'Avengers: Endgame' Director Reveals "I Love You 3,000" Was Inspired By RDJ's Kids
Brb crying again.
By Samantha Khor — 03 May 2019, 07:08 PM
WARNING: Major spoilers ahead! If you have not seen Avengers: Endgame, come back after you've watched it okay?
"I love you 3,000", a line originally said by Tony Stark's daughter Morgan in Avengers: Endgame, is definitely going down in history as one of the most impactful quotes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)
What does 'I Love You 3000' means?
In one of the film's sweetest moments, Morgan tells her dad she loves him "3,000" when he puts her to bed.
The memorable line would later take a heart-wrenching turn when Tony himself embraces it in a pre-recorded message for his family, played during his funeral at the end of the movie.
"I love you 3,000," Tony professed, as he looks into the camera at Morgan... and us, the audience. Cue all the tears.
Amidst speculation about the line's origins, co-director Anthony Russo recently revealed that "I love you 3,000" is inspired by Robert Downey Jr. a.k.a. Tony Stark himself.
In fact, it's something one of his kids say to him in real life.
Citing Watching Hollywood's interview with Anthony Russo, ComicBook.com reported that Downey told the filmmakers a story about one of his children telling him, "I love you 3,000", leading to the endearing phrase's inclusion in the script. It was not specified, however, which of his three children he was referring to.
Screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely confirmed that RDJ was indeed their real-life inspiration for the father-daughter exchange, which went differently in the original draft.
"The line went, 'I love you tons. I love you tons.'," McFeely said, as quoted by INSIDER. "And so, he says, 'I love you tons', but his children say to him, 'I love you 3,000'."
"In real life," Markus added.
Meanwhile, fans have also derived hidden meanings behind the quote, with the most notable one being that 3,000 is actually the amount of minutes that make up all 23 movies in the first three phases of MCU
However, it should be noted that the official runtime for Spider-Man: Far From Home, which is slated for release in July, has yet to be confirmed.
On that note, there's also this fan theory, which is making us tear up all over again:
Regardless of its origins, the now-iconic line has been adopted by MCU fans in heartwarming #ThankYouAvengers messages for Robert Downey Jr., the original six Avengers, and the characters they've known and loved over the past 11 years
Apart from "I love you 3,000", which was your favourite quote from Avengers: Endgame? Let us know in the comments section!
