Robert Downey Jr. Claims Captain America: Civil War is 'The Godfather' of Superhero Films

HaydnSpurrell Marvel's output owes a lot to film classics of old, the most obvious being Guardians of the Galaxy taking inspiration from Star Wars (although what sci-fi film hasn't?)

Now, the cast is setting the bar higher than they probably should. Speaking with Fandango, Robert Downey Jr. stated that "This is the Godfather of superhero movies." Co-director Joe Russo expands on this, stating that it refers to the number of characters in, and scale of, both movies. "That's a sprawling film with a lot of characters that tells very intricate stories," he said of the comparison.

"The movies we've been referencing a lot in this one are Se7en, weirdly," he admitted regarding the true inspiration for the directing duo. "Se7en [and] Fargo, just as far as we're not making comparisons in terms of quality, we're just talking influences."

That last sentence is important, because it's dangerous to start throwing classics around and tossing your own superhero flick into the same basket at the end. We'll have to wait and see just how similar this is to some of the great films when it arrives May 5.

Source: THR