Markiplier started seriously working on the Iron Lung movie around late 2022 , and the project is often described in interviews and reviews as a three-year-long passion project , suggesting early development and planning began circa 2021–2022.

Quick Scoop

Timeline in simple terms

Based on recent coverage of the film and Markiplier’s own comments:

  • Articles reviewing Iron Lung describe it as a three-year-long passion project , implying that the early work on the movie (acquiring rights, scripting, planning) started roughly three years before its 2026 theatrical buzz , i.e., around 2023 or late 2022.
  • Industry pieces on creator-led filmmaking note that Markiplier had been developing Iron Lung for several years before its release, reinforcing that it wasn’t a quick turnaround but a long build.
  • Behind-the-scenes coverage connects the movie’s production to his earlier experiments in filmmaking (like his 2018 short film), but those are more precursors than the actual start of Iron Lung itself.

So, while there isn’t a single official ā€œstart dateā€ spelled out day-by-day, public sources consistently frame Iron Lung as a multi-year project that Markiplier began developing around 2022–2023 , with serious production momentum picking up from late 2022 onward.

A bit more context

From YouTuber to horror director

  • Reviews emphasize that Iron Lung is Markiplier’s feature-film directorial and acting debut , built off his long history of horror game content on YouTube.
  • Pieces on the film call it a moody, claustrophobic sci‑fi horror movie written, directed by, and starring Markiplier, underscoring how hands-on he’s been from the development phase.

ā€œMarkiplier's live-action take on the Iron Lung game is a three-year-long passion project that has his fans flocking to theatres worldwide.ā€

That ā€œthree-year-longā€ phrase is the clearest clue we get about when he really started working on it.

Why the timeline matters (trending angle)

  • Recent coverage in early 2026 highlights Iron Lung as a case study in creator-led, self-distributed filmmaking , showing how long-term planning and persistence can lead to a surprise box-office success.
  • Industry and fan discussions on forums and news sites often mention the multi-year grind as part of the movie’s appeal—Markiplier didn’t just license a game and rush a film; he slowly built it up over several years.

In other words, when people ask ā€œwhen did Markiplier start working on Iron Lung?ā€ , most public sources answer indirectly: he’s been at it for about three years before its big theatrical run, pointing back to the 2022–2023 window as the real beginning.

TL;DR

Markiplier’s Iron Lung movie is widely described as a three-year passion project , which places the start of his work on it around late 2022 to early 2023 , with earlier short-film experiments in 2018 acting as creative groundwork but not the formal beginning of Iron Lung itself.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.