Spider-Man: Homecoming will definitely feature Robert Downey Jr's Iron Man

Michael Keaton's villainous appearance is off the cards, however

There's still a week to go before the release of Captain America: Civil War and casting announcements are being made surrounding the release of future superhero film Spider-Man: Homecoming.

With a release date set for July 2017, production is due to begin on Sony's franchise reboot extremely soon - and Deadline has confirmed that Robert Downey Jr. is on board to return as Tony Stark in what will be his eighth appearance as the character.

Starring as a much younger incarnation of the web-slinger is 19-year-old British actor Tom Holland who will make his debut as Peter Parker in Civil War; critics are praising his appearance, citing it a highlight of the new superhero mash-up.

Our very own review stated that "Civil War has its most fun with the former and his monumental Marvel homecoming."

Kevin Feige, head of Marvel Studios, claimed that the deal struck by Sony and Marvel has provided the opportunity for characters previously introduced in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) to show up in Sony's upcoming Spidey films.

If the film's comic book namesake is to be trusted, Downey Jr. won't be the only character from the MCU featuring: the Homecoming storyline features Captain America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and War Machine (Don Cheadle) as well as Wasp - the character played by Evangeline Lilly in Ant-Man.

It was recently reported that Birdman actor Michael Keaton was in talks to star as the film's villain, Vulture (yes, a literal birdman) - but it has since emerged that the former Batman has withdrawn from the project.

With the plot of Civil War - released 29 April - focused on a battle between Avengers Captain America and Iron Man, we'll go ahead and pretend that Downey Jr's casting doesn't eliminate a tiny bit of tension surrounding the film's climax. Still, who knows: Homecoming - which will be directed by Jon Watts - could always be a prequel.