Marvel Studios officially announced today that Robert Downey Jr. is returning as Tony Stark/Iron Man in both The Avengers 2 and The Avengers 3. However, the agreement was just a two-picture deal, which means that Iron Man 3 will likely be the last of his stand-alone movies.

The deal falls in line with a story from last month, that revealed the actor was in early talks to come back for The Avengers 2 and The Avengers 3, but had no interest in a potential Iron Man 4. Iron Man 3 was the last movie under Robert Downey Jr.'s Marvel deal. We also reported in April that the actor wants to "retire" as Tony Stark/Iron Man, but he didn't say when that might happen.

Joss Whedon is writing the screenplay and directing The Avengers 2, which will include the cast from Marvel's The Avengers, along with characters never before seen in Marvel movies, such as Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. Production is slated to begin in March 2014, so stay tuned for more updates from this Marvel Phase Two ensemble.