Robert Downey Jr. is about to have another hit on his hands when Iron Man 3 opens in a couple weeks.  Iron Man is the franchise that took him back from the brink to the point where his past failures—the flops, the drug addiction, the prison time—become somewhat forgettable.  He’s now one of the biggest stars in the world, and has the freedom to choose projects.  However, he knows that at age 48, genre movies are becoming a little too much.  He learned that lesson the hard way when he injured his ankle while doing a stunt on Iron Man 3.

In a new profile for GQ, Downey talks about how that’s leading him to possibly put away the armor in the near future.  He also mentions some projects beyond the Marvel Universe.  Hit the jump for more.

Today’s casting news updates include:

• Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air), coming off of a great debut with Bates Motel, has been cast opposite Robert Downey Jr. in The Judge.  Dave Dobkin (The Change-Up) is set to direct, with Robert Duvall and Vincent D’Onofrio rounding out the cast.

• Haley Joel Osment (The Sixth Sense) is keeping himself busy, lining up three new projects: The World Made Straight with Jeremy Irvine (War Horse), Sex Ed with Glen Powell (Stuck in Love), and Blank Nation opposite Michelle Trachtenberg (Gossip Girl).

Hit the jump for much more about these projects.

We’ve got a couple of exciting casting stories to share this afternoon.  First up, Robert Duvall is signing on to co-star with Robert Downey Jr. in the dramedy The Judge.  The folks at Variety report that Duvall is in final negotiations to play Downey Jr.’s father in the pic, which centers on an attorney who returns home for his mother’s funeral where he learns that his estranged father, a judge who suffers from Alzheimer’s, is suspected of murder.  Last fall we heard that Warner Bros. was attempting to coax Jack Nicholson to take on the father role and Tommy Lee Jones was apparently also in the mix, but Duvall won out in the end.

Hit the jump for more, including who’s in the running for the female lead and casting news for Alejandro González Iñárritu’s star-studded comedy Birdman.

When last we reported on director David Dobkins’ dramedy The Judge, it was to announce that Bill Dubuque had come on to do a rewrite and that Robert Downey Jr. was producing the picture as a starring vehicle. Now it looks as if Warner Bros. has extended an unofficial offer to Jack Nicholson to play Downey Jr.’s father in the film. Originally penned by Nick Schenk with an intermediate rewrite from David Seidler, The Judge centers on an attorney who returns home for his mother’s funeral only to discover that his estranged father, a judge who suffers from Alzheimer’s, is suspected of murder. Hit the jump for more, including how Nicholson’s fussy track record of selecting roles may impact The Judge.

We last heard about The Judge a year ago when David Seidler, basking in the glow of his Oscar win for The King’s Speech, signed on to rewrite the dramedy.  David Dobkin (The Change-Up) is set to direct and produce alongside Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey.  In a report on Bill Dubuque coming in to do another rewrite, Deadline mentions that The Judge is now planned as a starring vehicle for Downey.  The story, originally scripted by Nick Schenk (Gran Torino), centers on an attorney who returns home for his mother’s funeral.  He learns that his estranged father, a judge who suffers from Alzheimer’s, is suspected of murder.

Downey will film Iron Man 3 in a few weeks on the heels of the May 4 release of The Avengers.  After that, there’s a long list of projects the actor is attached to, including Tim Burton’s Pinocchio, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice, and the Perry Mason reboot.  It seems unlikely The Judge will shoot to the top of the list, and Dobkin’s immediate focus is on Arthur & Lancelot.  But it could be a nice change of pace if and when Downey seeks a smaller production among these giant superhero tentpoles.  I’d nudge him toward Inherent Vice if I had a vote.

For me, the greatest outcome of The King’s Speech‘s success was getting to know screenwriter David Seidler — the wittiest, most eloquent interviewee on the press circuit in 2010.  One Oscar later, and Seidler is rightfully in demand.  He just signed on to write for two projects: the family drama The Judge and the WWII tale Games of 1940.

Nick Schenk (Gran Torino) wrote the original script for The Judge, which centers on an attorney who returns home for his mother’s funeral — he learns that his father who suffers from Alzheimer’s is suspected of murder.  Warner Bros. has hired Seidler to rewrite the screenplay.  David Dobkin (Fred Claus) will direct The Judge and produce with Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey.

Hit the jump for more on Games of 1940.