Robert Downey Jr. says he wishes Elon Musk ‘would control his behavior a little more’

Robert Downey Jr. said he wanted Elon Musk to “control his behavior a little more,” jabbing the billionaire CEO who has often been compared to Tony Stark.

It came in a conversation with the podcaster Kara Swisher, who said Musk had been “cosplaying” as Tony Stark, the Marvel superhero played by Downey in the “Iron Man” and “Avengers” movies.

The two briefly shared the screen: Musk had a cameo in 2010’s “Iron Man 2,” in which he met Stark at the Monaco Grand Prix.

During the “On With Kara Swisher” episode, which was released on Monday, Swisher asked Downey what he thought of Musk “cosplaying Tony Stark.”

She appeared to be referring to Musk’s outspoken style, which overlaps with Stark’s.

He said: “I’ve only met him a few times. As an almost 60-year-old recovering white American male, I just wish that he would control his behavior a little more, but that’s not on me.

“I know that this idea of, ‘It’s all OK because we’ve got to get to Mars,’ doesn’t really hold water with me. But again, you know, you have to look at all that he’s done that demonstrates why he’s valuable.”

In 2022, the “Iron Man” writer Mark Fergus told New York magazine that the film’s interpretation of Stark, who debuted in the comics in 1962, had elements of Musk, Donald Trump, and Apple’s cofounder Steve Jobs.

Fergus said: “Musk took the brilliance of Jobs with the showmanship of Trump. He was the only one who had the fun factor and the celebrity vibe and actual business substance.”

Musk went through a period of heightened popularity in pop culture, fueled by his idea of colonizing Mars, his role as CEO of Tesla, and headline-grabbing products like the Boring Company’s flamethrowers.

He also made cameos in other movies during the 2010s, including “Machete Kills,” “Transcendence,” “Why Him?” and “Men in Black: International.”

Since Musk started being a more vocal political force as the owner of X, he has made fewer pop-culture appearances.