Fetch The 'Stane' Removal: Disney Nearly Had A Very Different Fate For A Major MCU Villain

If you remember back to 2008, the landscape of superhero movies was very different than what we see today. We had three Spider-Man films, three X-Men films, but no Dark Knight — it was released late 2008 — however, 2008 was also the year that Disney kicked off the entire MCU back with #IronMan. Robert Downey Jr., stepped into the red and gold suit to fly Marvel's comic book universe to greatness and eventually become the highest-grossing franchise in cinematic history.

While Iron Man was great, there was certainly room for improvement and some tinkering was needed under the hood of the #MCU's first foray into theaters. That being said, a shining example of acting greatness was Jeff Bridges ruling the roost as the bolshy Obadiah Stane — a villain who is relatively tame compared to today's enemies like Ego or Thanos. While Stane bowed out in the climax of Iron Man, it sounds like during the many drafts and rewrites of Iron Man, this wasn't always the plan.

Stubborn Stanes

Speaking to CinemaBlend, #JeffBridges revealed that Obadiah Stane was originally supposed to escape his grisly fate and presumably have some villainous return later in the MCU:

"In the original script they were supposed to open my suit after, and I was gone! But then, no. I read the scene we were shooting, and they said, 'No, you're dead.' And I said, 'Oh...' Then they said, 'Well, it's a comic! Maybe you'll come back!' I don't know."

After taking on the Iron Monger persona, Downey Jr.'s Stark had a climactic battle with Stane atop Stark Industries. Bridges had an achingly short tenure in the MCU and we watched Stane tumble to his death to be fried like a mosquito. It may not always have been the plan to kill off the MCU's first villain in the opening film, but in the version that came to theaters, there is no denying that Obadiah definitely kicked the (iron) bucket.

While there is obviously no way to go back from Stane's death (unless you plan on using the Infinity Gauntlet), there is always the option for Bridges to appear again in the MCU. With the upcoming Captain Marvel being set in the '90s, we could easily see the Stark Industries exec star alongside Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson before he embraces his villainous streak.

Also, speaking of Infinity Gauntlets, could we see Stane brought back to life or used as a vision to haunt Stark in the upcoming #InfinityWar? Given that the Russo brothers seem to be bringing everyone back (sorry, not you Natalie Portman), Bridges would seem right at home among the rest of the megastars. When pushed about a possible return to the comic book powerhouse, the 67-year-old remained typically coy:

"You never know. You never know."

While it is all ifs and buts on what Stane's survival from the original drafts would've meant for the subsequent Iron Man films, you can only imagine how sweet that cliffhanger ending would've been. Given that Iron Man 2 spared Justin Hammer and Trevor Slattery survived Iron Man 3, we could've seen Tony Stark assemble a team of vengeful foes a'la the Sinister Six. Who knows though — Iron Man 4?

(Source: CinemaBlend)