Right, DF5 was before Elf but he was well known. He vocalized a desire to be a legendary powerful mogul throughout the show. Part of his evolution was the show itself, as he broke bread with a lot of different people and famous friends on tv and could be seen by industry gatekeepers as a thoughtful and ambitious creative.

On Elf he spoke about how he based the first 40 minutes on Tootsie's scene lengths to copy that film's dynamic comedy pacing. So he's clever. The first Iron Man has the same methodical structure and rhythm; he knows how to build a story. I dont know if he's the only director who wouldve insisted on Downey but his unique indie/mainstream sensibility was decisive in creating Hollywood as we know it.