20 Best Movie Performances Of 2019

18. Robert Downey Jr. - Avengers: Endgame

Avengers Endgame Tony Stark
Marvel Studios

Though the Marvel Cinematic Universe hasn't ever netted any of its actors major awards attention - after all, they're not cinema, according to Martin Scorsese - the best shot the franchise has ever had surely arrived with Avengers: Endgame.

But outside of Oscar speculation, Robert Downey Jr. was given the floor to deliver his best-ever rendition of Tony Stark.

Initially a gaunt, broken man who transforms into a fearful protector of his family and, eventually, returns to become the fist-pumping hero we all know and love, it's a hell of an arc for the character, and Downey pulls it off beautifully.

His iconic "I am Iron Man" moment would surely be his Oscar reel clip, but there are also many fantastically human moments throughout Endgame - especially in its grim opening passage - which highlight just how smart a gamble Downey's casting initially was.

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Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.