As Marvel Cinematic Universe, this is not the first time that a director has collaborated with an actor inside the superhero franchise and gone on to reunite in other ventures.
For instance, James Gunn has had recurring collaborators like Sean Gunn and Michael Rooker in both his MCU and DCEU ventures. Then, there is Taika Waititi who helped his Thor: Ragnarok.
The Russos/Chris Evans - Captain America: The Winter Soldier/The Gray Man
With Endgame.
A recurring part of all these movies was, of course, Chris Evans essaying the role of Captain America. The most highly-anticipated movie in the Russos’ post-MCU career found them reuniting with Evans, who plays a villain for a change. He plays a rogue colleague to Ryan Gosling’s CIA agent protagonist.
Jon Favreau/Scarlett Johansson - Iron Man 2/The Jungle Book
Jon Favreau’s sophomore outing in MCU's Iron Man trilogy introduced Black Widow, who has turned into one of Scarlett Johansson’s best roles. While Johannsson went on to appear in numerous MCU movies (even getting her solo venture), she had some non-MCU team-ups with Favreau.
Apart from a ing role in his slice-of-life comedy Her, Kaa proved to be a brief yet popular role in Johansson’s multi-genre filmography.
Taika Waititi/Sam Neill - Thor: Ragnarok/The Hunt For The Wilderpeople
Taika Waititi first crossed paths with Deadpool 2 later on, Neill also got a taste of Marvel with a cameo in Thor: Ragnarok.
Cameoing alongside Matt Damon and Luke Hemsworth, he appears as one of the Asgardian theater actors who re-enact the tales from Thor’s life. Neill pulls off a hilarious Odin impression and goes on to reprise the role in Waititi’s sequel Thor: Love and Thunder.
The Russos/Tom Holland - Avengers: Infinity War/Cherry
Even though Tom Holland’s take on Spider-Man was introduced in The Russos’ Civil War, the character received some of his most emotional moments in Infinity War. The scene involving Parker dying in Tony Stark’s hands, in particular, proved to be a major tearjerker.
While Holland continued his successful stint in the MCU with the other Spider-Man solo movies, he also experimented with more serious roles on the side. This included a lead role in the crime thriller Cherry that found him collaborating yet again with Joe and Anthony Russo. Even though the movie drew mixed reactions, Cherry still proved to show Holland’s versatility as an actor.
James Gunn/Sean Gunn - Guardians Of The Galaxy/The Suicide Squad
Apart from Michael Rooker, if there’s one man that people can find in almost every James Gunn movie, it is his brother Sean Gunn. The actor had earlier appeared in Gunn’s dark comedy Super following it up with two roles in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. Not only has he appeared as Yondu’s henchman Kraglin, but he also performed the motion-capture for Rocket Raccoon.
Continuing his mo-cap skills, he also had a brief role in Gunn’s take on The Suicide Squad playing the Weasel Man. Additionally, he also had a live-action cameo in the same movie as Calendar Man.
Sam Raimi/Bruce Campbell - Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness/The Evil Dead
Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi have gone on to be one of the best actor-director duos ever since they first collaborated on the landmark horror hit The Evil Dead. Campbell’s character Ash Williams redefined the limits of the horror-comedy genre with Raimi also directing him in the movie’s two sequels.
Additionally, Campbell has always ensured to cameo in Raimi’s other movies, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. He cameos as a hot dog vendor in Earth-838 who gets subjected to a spell by Strange. Campbell appears briefly in the middle of the movie and the post-credits scene while displaying his effortless comic timing.
Shane Black/Robert Downey Jr. - Iron Man 3/Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Even though Robert Downey Jr. had a rocky offscreen life in the 2000s, his film credits still drew some critical acclaim such as the underrated neo-noir thriller Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. The movie follows the misadventures of a thief and a private detective as they are caught up in the murder of a Hollywood actress. The movie benefited greatly from Val Kilmer and Robert Downey Jr’s on-screen chemistry as well as Shane Black’s dialogues who made his directorial debut with this.
When Black made his MCU entry, it only made sense for him to helm a movie with Robert Downey Jr in the lead. Despite drawing polarizing reactions, Iron Man 3 proved to be a fresh-enough narrative to mark the start of Phase Two.
Ryan Coogler/Michael B Jordan - Black Panther/Fruitvale Station
Ryan Coogler’s Rocky franchise.
After playing the boxer Adonis Creed, Jordan turned towards a villainous role in Coogler’s one of MCU’s best villains.
James Gunn/Michael Rooker - Guardians Of The Galaxy/The Suicide Squad
Michael Rooker has been James Gunn’s muse since the very start of his career, having starred in Gunn’s underrated body horror debut Slither. When Gunn got his big break in the MCU with Guardians of the Galaxy, he ensured Rooker gets a crucial role as Yondu. Initially introduced as a villain, Yondu turns out to be a caring father-figure to Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord. Rooker reprised his act in the sequel and earned rave reviews for his performance.
When Gunn shifted between comic universes and made his DC debut with The Suicide Squad, he again collaborated with Rooker albeit for an extended guest appearance. He appears as the supervillain Savant in an intense intro sequence but hilariously dies in the matter of a few minutes.
Jon Favreau/Robert Downey Jr. - Iron Man/Chef
Iron Man marked a watershed moment in superhero cinema. It established Jon Favreau as a trendsetter in modern pop culture while Robert Downey Jr received one of the best comebacks an actor can dream of. The two creative collaborators and real-life friends crossed paths yet again when Favreau decided to take a break from big-budget cinema and starred and acted in a lighter food-centric comedy Chef.
Downey Jr has a guest role in the movie as he plays Marvin, the ex-husband to the protagonist's wife. Even though Marvin shares a rocky relationship with Favreau’s titular chef, he is the one who arranges a food truck for him.
