Before Robert Downey Jr. was cast as Iron Man, Tom Cruise was actually the actor considered for the role. Obviously things didn’t pan out that way, however, but it looks like Tom Cruise might still join the MCU after all. Rumors have persisted that the actor will be portraying a variant of Iron Man for the upcoming film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. While that has yet to be confirmed, there are now further reports that he’ll be joining a separate film entirely.
As revealed via GFR, they noted that while Tom Cruise could be introduced in the Doctor Strange sequel, he’s for sure tied to at least one other project. Details are scarce, of course, but with the Multiverse coming in full force – anything is possible. This was already evident with the recently-released film Spider-Man: No Way Home.
As they’ve briefly noted:
“Tom Cruise has joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will be in an upcoming project.”
They also expect him to play a large role in whatever part he’s acquired:
“While we aren’t certain the exact project Tom Cruise will take part in within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it is sure looking like he is going to become something of a prominent figure in that franchise, at least in some respect.”
In fact, they’ve theorized “he will be playing Superior Iron Man, a villainous version of Stark from another reality.” Furthermore, they mentioned this interesting route to take the character:
“There is a possibility this character is also a member of the Illuminati, a powerful group that could also include people like Patrick Stewart’s Professor X and maybe even Mahershala Ali’s Blade.”
While a lot of this information depends on what happens in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it certainly seems like things are being mapped out for a much more diverse and expansive Marvel Cinematic Universe. As such, it does appear that fans can expect Tom Cruise to be joining the MCU as a result.