"Iron Man 4" has been plagued with many rumors as of late. Marvel recently revealed its Phase 3 schedule and the fourth installment just happens to be absent. This means that should an "Iron Man 4" film be green-lighted, fans can expect the earliest release in 2020.

Marvel gave a Phase 3 update via its website recently. It revealed that "Black Panther," the standalone film starring the eponymous character who was introduced in "Captain America: Civil War," is slated to arrive on Feb. 16, 2018. "Ant-Man and the Wasp," the sequel to "Ant-Man," will be released on July 6, 2018. Finally, rounding out Marvel's Phase 3 plan is "Captain Marvel" on March 8, 2019.

The absence of "Iron Man 4" was immediately noticed by many fans. However, it should be noted that Marvel also teased three untitled films scheduled for a 2020 release. The first will drop on May 1, the second on July 10, and the third on Nov. 6. And while three movies in the same year within mere months of each other is definitely something to look forward to, fans can't help but speculate that one of those titles may be "Iron Man 4."

As for the cast, there have been rumors flying around that Robert Downey Jr., who jump-started the Marvel superhero frenzy back in 2008 with the first "Iron Man" film, may not be returning to reprise his role as Tony Stark. Some have argued that it's because of a disagreement regarding his salary, while others have said that the actor is getting too old to continuously play the action-packed role.

It can be recalled that Marvel Comics introduced a female Iron Man, Riri Williams, who managed to reverse engineer Stark's suit. There has been talk that the character may be introduced in the fourth "Iron Man" film so that Tony can pass the baton to her. As previously reported, "Game of Thrones" star Nathalie Emmanuel is rumored to be bringing the character to life.

Since Marvel has yet to confirm this, though, fans should take this news with a grain of salt. In the meantime, fans can look forward to Downey Jr. reprising his role as Tony Stark in the upcoming "Avengers: Infinity War," which is slated to premiere in 2018.