Avengers: Infinity War - 10 Things We Learned From The Directors' Roundtable

10. Elf Got Jon Favreau Hired For Iron Man

Elf Will Ferrell
New Line Cinema

Despite not being anything like a superhero movie, it's Jon Favreau's 2003 comedy hit Elf which actually won the filmmaker the Iron Man directing gig. Favreau said:

"What really hit was Elf. Because Elf made money and I was sort of on a list of directors that were hirable. They approached me about it, and there was not really a script or anything. They were working on a script, they had some story ideas. And I didn't know what I was going to do with it."

Favreau also added that MCU mega-producer Kevin Feige was surprised by how funny Elf ended up being, tying into a general discussion about the MCU's tendency to hire directors better known for their comedy than their action chops.

Still, love or hate Elf, without it the MCU could be very different from what it is today.

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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.