'Iron Man' director Jon Favreau called the Russo brothers to persuade them not to kill Tony Stark in 'Avengers: Endgame': 'We did it anyway'

• The Russo brothers said Jon Favreau tried to get them to avoid killing Iron Man in "Avengers: Endgame."
• "He read the script and said to us, 'Are you really going to kill Iron Man?'" Anthony Russo told Vanity Fair.

The death of Tony Stark in "Avengers: Endgame" was a moment that shocked fans. But it also shocked some of the creators associated with the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In fact, one of them tried to convince "Endgame" directors Joe Russo and Anthony Russo from going through with it.

In a recent Vanity Fair video, the Russo brothers talked about how Jon Favreau, who directed "Iron Man" and stars as Happy Hogan in the MCU, was against Stark dying.

"Part of the pressure came from Jon Favreau, who called us up after he read the script and said to us, 'Are you guys really going to kill Iron Man?'" Anthony recalled of planning Tony Stark's death scene and feeling pressure to do it justice.

"I remember pacing on the corner of a stage on the phone with Favreau trying to talk him off a ledge," Joe added. "Because he's like, 'You can't do this. It's gonna devastate people, and you don't want them, you know, walking out of the theater and into traffic.' We did it anyway."

"We felt like we had earned the arc that would feel redemptive and emotional and uplifting and hopeful, even though he had sacrificed his life," Joe said.

Before creating "The Mandalorian" series, Favreau launched the MCU by directing "Iron Man" in 2008 and "Iron Man 2" in 2010. The Marvel franchise then took off into the juggernaut it is today.

The Russo brothers recently directed "The Gray Man" for Netflix.