IRON MAN 3 (Now w/ Reviews)

[Ribbons]

Okay, one of those is definitely an Alice in Wonderland reference.

[Ribbons]

The King's Speech Director Turned Down Iron Man 3?

This weekend's Academy Awards might be low on comic book movie fare, but that doesn't mean there aren't some interesting, comics-friendly subplots to be found in the Oscar madness. For example, a new report suggests that "The King's Speech" director Tom Hooper was offered the director's chair for "Iron Man 3" after Jon Favreau bowed out of the franchise late last year.

According to a Los Angeles Times blog, "a person who has worked closely with Hooper" indicated that the Oscar-nominated director was one of the filmmakers approached by Marvel after Favreau's departure. The report indicates that Hooper declined the gig, which eventually went to "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" director Shane Black.

While the pairing of Hooper with Tony Stark's armored alter ego might seem to come out of left field, it's not entirely unprecedented.

Way back in March 2010, "The Hurt Locker" director Kathryn Bigelow revealed that she was offered the director's chair for Sony's upcoming reboot of the Spider-Man movie franchise, "The Amazing Spider-Man." Like Hooper, she ultimately turned the offer down, and the Spidey's big reboot eventually went to "500 Days Of Summer" director Marc Webb.

Of course, that's not to say that Oscar-nominated filmmakers have avoided big-budget comic book movies altogether. "Thor" director Kenneth Branagh was nominated for "Henry V" as both the director and star in 1990, and was nominated as a writer for his 1997 take on "Hamlet."

In fact, this year's crop of Oscar nominees is chock full of comics-friendly filmmakers, with "Inception" director Christopher Nolan receiving his second nomination for writing (after 2002's "Memento") right before he kicks off production on "The Dark Knight Rises."

"Black Swan" director Darren Aronofsky also factors prominently into the Oscar nominations this year, but it won't be long before he begins work on "The Wolverine" with star Hugh Jackman.

Finally, this year's show isn't entirely devoid of comic book movies, either. As we reported earlier, "Iron Man 2" is nominated in the "Visual Effects" category — so you can tune in Sunday to see how all the award shenanigans play out.

I have a hard time picturing Tom Hooper directing a superhero movie. However, I do admire the fact that Marvel's swinging for the fences.

[TheButcher]

From AICN:
Shane Black talks direction of Iron Man 3 and whether or not to expect more Marvel cameos!

Hey Harry--

I spent the weekend at the Omaha Film Festival where Shane Black was one of the featured panelists. He spent the weekend talking about his beginnings, his screenwriting process, and his opinions on various films and scripts he has been involved with over the years. Eventually, Iron Man 3 was brought up.

Some highlights:

He is scheduled to meet with Robert Downey Jr. this week when he returns to L.A. Downey will be contributing to the story and Shane will be writing it in addition to directing.

The studio was not happy with the direction Iron Man 2 took. Iron Man 3 will not be another "two men in iron suits fighting each other" film. Instead, it will be more like a Tom Clancy-thriller, with Iron Man fighting real world villians.

Iron Man 3 will be made after The Avengers and will not feature any other heroes from the Marvel Universe. Marvel is only doing crossover characters to lead up to The Avengers, and once that film is released, the plan is to go back to self-containted single-character stories.

You may call me Krullboy.

[TheButcher]

From Motion Captured:
First details of Shane Black's 'Tom Clancy'-like 'Iron Man 3' revealed

Meanwhile, over at It's On The Grid, they've got a list of open writing assignments at Disney, and they've added "The Inhumans" to the projects they have in development. If you don't know the comic, it's one of the more cosmic-minded Marvel movies, big and weird, dealing with superbeings who live on the moon, the long-abandoned creations of the Kree aliens.

That's not exactly the film that It's On The Grid described, though, which makes me think that there will be some major revisions to the book in an effort to get it to the screen. Between this and "Doctor Strange," it sounds like we're in for the much weirder side of Marvel in the next few years, and that sounds great to me.

[TonyWilson]

The King's Speech Director Turned Down Iron Man 3?

This weekend's Academy Awards might be low on comic book movie fare, but that doesn't mean there aren't some interesting, comics-friendly subplots to be found in the Oscar madness. For example, a new report suggests that "The King's Speech" director Tom Hooper was offered the director's chair for "Iron Man 3" after Jon Favreau bowed out of the franchise late last year.

According to a Los Angeles Times blog, "a person who has worked closely with Hooper" indicated that the Oscar-nominated director was one of the filmmakers approached by Marvel after Favreau's departure. The report indicates that Hooper declined the gig, which eventually went to "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" director Shane Black.

While the pairing of Hooper with Tony Stark's armored alter ego might seem to come out of left field, it's not entirely unprecedented.

Way back in March 2010, "The Hurt Locker" director Kathryn Bigelow revealed that she was offered the director's chair for Sony's upcoming reboot of the Spider-Man movie franchise, "The Amazing Spider-Man." Like Hooper, she ultimately turned the offer down, and the Spidey's big reboot eventually went to "500 Days Of Summer" director Marc Webb.

Of course, that's not to say that Oscar-nominated filmmakers have avoided big-budget comic book movies altogether. "Thor" director Kenneth Branagh was nominated for "Henry V" as both the director and star in 1990, and was nominated as a writer for his 1997 take on "Hamlet."

In fact, this year's crop of Oscar nominees is chock full of comics-friendly filmmakers, with "Inception" director Christopher Nolan receiving his second nomination for writing (after 2002's "Memento") right before he kicks off production on "The Dark Knight Rises."

"Black Swan" director Darren Aronofsky also factors prominently into the Oscar nominations this year, but it won't be long before he begins work on "The Wolverine" with star Hugh Jackman.

Finally, this year's show isn't entirely devoid of comic book movies, either. As we reported earlier, "Iron Man 2" is nominated in the "Visual Effects" category — so you can tune in Sunday to see how all the award shenanigans play out.

I have a hard time picturing Tom Hooper directing a superhero movie. However, I do admire the fact that Marvel's swinging for the fences.

Most interesting thing about this piece of info is that Bigelow was wanted for The Amazing Spider-Man, that woulda been crazy good imo.

[TheButcher]

Marvel Taps Its 'Runaways' Scribe Drew Pearce To Write 'Iron Man 3' Script

[TheButcher]

WC 11: Will Jon Favreau Act in Iron Man 3?

[TheButcher]

From Cinema Blend:
Shane Black Is Writing Iron Man 3 After All

When Drew Pearce was announced as the screenwriter of Iron Man 3, a lot of people were disappointed. The movie’s being directed by Shane Black, who’s best known as a pretty great screenwriter, especially when it comes to big-budget action. The hope among fans had been that he’d be scripting the movie too, and in the process would really be able to make the whole thing his vision. Don’t worry, he will.

We’ve heard from multiple, completely trustworthy sources that Shane Black is in fact writing Iron Man 3. He’ll co-write the movie with Pearce and word is that his ideas are behind a lot of what’s happening with the script they’re working on. Shane Black will be writing, or co-writing at least, the Iron Man 3 script which he’ll also direct.

As for why Pearce has been brought in to write it with him since Black is a fairly proven screenwriter who shouldn't actually need any help, we’re hearing conflicting reports. Some sources say that Disney may be worried about Shane’s history of R-rated movies and that Pearce has been brought in to make sure he keeps it family-friendly, others say that’s not the case. Would Shane Black have remained involved if they were bringing in another writer to keep him in check? Iron Man 3's a pretty big opportunity and it’s not like the directing gigs have been rolling in since his eye-poppingly awesome directorial debut, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. We’ll keep an eye on this one.

[Lord Voldemoo]

From Cinema Blend:
Shane Black Is Writing Iron Man 3 After All

When Drew Pearce was announced as the screenwriter of Iron Man 3, a lot of people were disappointed. The movie’s being directed by Shane Black, who’s best known as a pretty great screenwriter, especially when it comes to big-budget action. The hope among fans had been that he’d be scripting the movie too, and in the process would really be able to make the whole thing his vision. Don’t worry, he will.

We’ve heard from multiple, completely trustworthy sources that Shane Black is in fact writing Iron Man 3. He’ll co-write the movie with Pearce and word is that his ideas are behind a lot of what’s happening with the script they’re working on. Shane Black will be writing, or co-writing at least, the Iron Man 3 script which he’ll also direct.

As for why Pearce has been brought in to write it with him since Black is a fairly proven screenwriter who shouldn't actually need any help, we’re hearing conflicting reports. Some sources say that Disney may be worried about Shane’s history of R-rated movies and that Pearce has been brought in to make sure he keeps it family-friendly, others say that’s not the case. Would Shane Black have remained involved if they were bringing in another writer to keep him in check? Iron Man 3's a pretty big opportunity and it’s not like the directing gigs have been rolling in since his eye-poppingly awesome directorial debut, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. We’ll keep an eye on this one.

Great news. I guess I just assumed that something like this was the case, but it's great to see it (mostly) confirmed.

[TheButcher]

From Collider:
Don Cheadle Talks IRON MAN 3, THE AVENGERS, HOUSE OF LIES, and His Miles Davis Biopic

[TheButcher]

Kevin Feige Says Iron Man 3 Is The Start Of The Next Marvel Movie Wave And Will Lead To The Avengers 2

It was made explicit during the Avengers panel at NYCC today: after The Avengers, Iron Man 3 will kick-start a new era for the ongoing Marvel movie cross-over project.

Kevin Feige spoke about being in pre-production on Iron Man 3 right now, and referred to it as the first film in “the second phase of the Avengers initiative”. His hope is to build up, in a similar fashion to this last time, and culminate in The Avengers 2.

The first clue to this second phase is likely to come with The Avengers, as Feige confirmed that there’s going to be a little teaser scene tucked away at the end, after the credits.

But what about those Guardians of the Galaxy rumours? Aren’t we going to see those characters cropping in Marvel films, coming together like The Avengers did?

Feige says that, in fact, there is a Guardians of the Galaxy film in development but it will, in this respect at least be standalone. Missed opportunity? Or a nice chance to have a picture not get bogged down with continuity beyond its own narrative?

[TheButcher]

From CBR:
LBCC: “Iron Man 3” Director Shane Black Panel

At the Shane Black Q&A at Long Beach Comic Con, screenwriter, actor, and director Shane Black (who’s next film is “Iron Man” 3) began the panel by stepping onstage and pleading for the audience to explain one thing: what is the technical term for people dressing in costume?

“Cosplay!” members of the audience yelled back at Black, who then gestured at the multiple cosplayers around the room.

“In a cursory evaluation as yet to be concluded, the cosplay people here [at Long Beach Comic Con] are hotter than LA,” announced Black as the audience cheered.

This interaction set the tone for the panel, Black speaking freely to the audience and encouraging people to shout out answers while joking with them from stage.

“Last time I was in Long Beach we shot a film called ‘Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,’” Black continued, pausing to let the cheers die down after mentioning the film. Shooting on the freeway down the street from the convention center, Black laughed as he recalled that he was told they could shoot for free if the movie included the Welcome To Long Beach sign.

“Like that was going to attract tourists!” said Black as the audience laughed. Reminiscing about working with Robert Downey Jr. on the film naturally brought the director and screenwriter to “Iron Man” and Black told the audience that as an adventure comics and comedy fan he understood what it was like to be obsessed about media.

“It’s the same side of the coin really, because I was that kid in high school who would come home without friends at the end of the school day and I’d buy all the comedy albums I could get…and just go up to my room and laugh my ass off by myself listening to comedy albums,” said Black. Adding that he’d do the same thing with adventure stories and adventure comics, Black said that he understood the obsessive passion for material comic book fans feel. Black also thought that isolation helped shape him artistically.

“My life was living out other people’s adventure stories from Edgar Rice Burroughs through Theodore Sturgeon, it was all leading up to something,” said Black, adding, “Two good things come of it: one, I’m no longer ashamed to be alone…and the other great thing is that all that input just gestates and makes a stew and ferments over the years until the end product is you make something.”

He then asked how many artists and writers were in the audience. Half the audience raised their hands. “There you go,” said Black, pointing to the audience members.

Black told the listening audience that a four page horror comic in a horror anthology was directly responsible for him not only getting into writing, but understanding how important reversals and payoffs are to a story. Describing the comic’s plot, Black explained the story revolved around a zombie kid rising from the grave and stumbling back to his house. Through the zombie’s occasional lucid moments you learn he was a disabled kid from an abusive home, and that he was killed after he was accidentally beat too hard by his family.

“You say to yourself, oh zombie, he’s coming out of the grave he’s going to get revenge,” said Black. However, after mindlessly killing his parents as they try to kill him again, it turns out the zombie wanted something else entirely. “You think, wow he just got revenge, except the zombie doesn’t stop there, he keeps walking down the hall into his old room and he gets his teddy bear – and the last panel is him back pulling the dirt over him with his bear because now he can sleep,” said Black.

“I just thought, Jesus god, that was so powerful for me,” said Black. “Here I am as a kid in tears about this zombie getting his teddy bear and going back to bed.”

Black then asked the audience who they considered the great current comic book storytellers and the audience shouted out the names Grant Morrison, Neil Gaiman, Robert Kirkman and Matt Fraction.

“It’s funny because even as a kid I knew that Marv Wolfman was good but Jerry Conway wasn’t,” said Black as the audience laughed. Mentioning Peter O’Donnell’s “Modesty Blaise” as one of his favorite comics, Black said he felt that comics for the past ten or fifteen years lacked sophistication, telling the audience that during the height of the ‘90s comic bubble he was neighbors with Rob Liefield. One day the artist invited him over to read his comics, telling Black how well they were selling.

“They sucked! You didn’t know where you were, what things were, you’d turn and say that’s a wall of muscles and tits!” said Black as the audience laughed and cheered. ”Then you get into things like ‘Hellblazer’ where you see more nuance and I’ve always wondered why can’t you do a comic without that guy with the muscles?” added Black.

Switching to “Iron Man 3,” Black admitted that ten years ago he would not have believed Marvel would ever make a movie about Iron Man, precisely because he was not that over-muscled stereotypical superhero. Outside of “Iron Man 3,” Black was also involved in the very first “Iron Man,” albeit in a very small way.

“Downey and Favreau came to my house and said, we need your help, and we talked for a few days. That was my participation on ‘Iron Man,’ we talked for a few days,” laughed Black. Uncertain why Favreau left the franchise, Black said that he felt it was most likely because Favreau just had other things he wanted to do. He also stated Downey Jr. was the one who called him to convince Black to jump on the film.

“Robert called me and said, ‘I have big plans for you!’” said Black as the audience laughed again. Though he at first planned to both write and direct the film, Black confessed he was surprised when he found out screenwriter Drew Pearce was going to write the script.

“All of a sudden I’m reading the paper and it’s like, Drew Pearce writing Iron Man! I went to work and said, ‘You guys, he’s British for Christ sakes!’” said Black, continuing, “But what happened was this great collaboration and friendship with this great, lovely British writer.”

“We decided that the villain was going to be the Melter – no, I’m kidding,” added Black as the audience laughed. The director continued, “That’s the problem, isn’t it? Iron Man never really had good villains.” When audience members suggested the Mandarin, Black dismissed it as a racist caricature. The director then said he was not going to divulge any detail about who the villain would be, stating that it was more satisfying to see the movie without knowing everything beforehand.

“Do you want to know when you’re going to die? No! Just wait, you’ll die,” joked Black as the audience cracked up once more.

Touching on the second “Iron Man” movie, Black stated that while it was successful commercially, he believed it was critically ill received as the movie made a lot of “half choices” and that Stark was not a “proactive” hero in it.

“The middle of the movie is Tony Stark sitting around his house!” complained Black. Emphasizing high stakes as extremely important to a movie, Black said that in “Iron Man 3” he hoped to make bold choices and planned to set up multiple payoffs and reversals. He suddenly quizzed the audience on what a reversal was, and one audience member said it was an event or bit of information that shifted your perception.

“Yes!” said Black, adding that it could also be a physical twist such as revealing a gun. Touching on other films that use reversals well, Black pointed to the original “Star Wars” movies as a fantastic example, criticizing the prequels for lacking the interesting twists of the original three movies. Black then named passion as the most important part of creating any movie, whether “Iron Man 3” or “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.”

Talking about the differences in his directing and shooting practical versus green screen, Black said he didn’t mind CGI and green screen effects, but he has to plan it out much more carefully. He also said that while it was easier to use green screen, “The biggest problem with a green screen to me is with actors,” said Black. Citing James Franco’s “flat performance in ‘Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes,’” he explained that the problem is that actors have a hard time reacting to nothing.

“I love the tinker toy approach, I love having a set…really I’m just playing,” added Black.

The director also said he enjoyed enhancing real footage with CGI, rather than relying entirely on a created image, citing “Muholland Drive” and “Jurassic Park” as two films that skillfully use CGI to enhance reality. “As a director you need to decide where that handoff is.”

The director then stated he loved “Thor,” to which the audience cheered and applauded. However, “I just keep going back to the Pixar things,” admitted Black with a laugh, citing “The Incredibles” as “Brilliant.”

Opening the floor to audience questions, the first audience member to the microphone jokingly asked if “Iron Man 3” takes place at Christmas, like so many of Black’s other films.

“I wouldn’t rule it out,” said Black as the audience laughed.

The next audience member asked Black whether he preferred practical effects or digital ones and Black said that at this point CG often looks more real than the practical effects, explaining that Iron Man’s real armor looks faker onscreen than the CGI version. “These movies are so hard because you don’t know until two weeks before you come out what they are going to look like,” said Black.

Another audience member asked Black if it was intimidating to direct “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.”

“It was very intimidating, but there’s a great deal to be accomplished when you have nothing to loose,” said Black. Talking about his retreat from Hollywood in the late ‘90s, Black told the next audience member to the microphone that after selling “The Long Kiss Goodnight” for four million dollars he began getting hate mail and was ostracized from Hollywood creative circles. This culminated in his application to the Academy of Motion Pictures being rejected despite his qualifications and meeting every criteria.

“I just wanted to tell my stories and explore, so I backed out and said I don’t want to be in the spotlight,” said Black.

The next audience member asked if Black’s American movie adaptation of “Death Note” was still happening. Black said that it was, though for a while it seemed the project would be dropped as the studio tried to “loose the demon” that was a central character to original manga’s plot. “Loose the Demon, we don’t want the kid to be evil…they just kept qualifying it until it ceased to exist,” said Black, adding that the demon and main character becoming evil are now back in the script as, to his mind, the movie should be about, “The creation of a villain, the downward spiral,” said Black.

Going back to “Iron Man 3” Black told the audience that he requested that director Jon Favreau return as Happy Hogan in the film. “I love him as an actor,” said Black as the audience cheered. He also revealed that outside of a few references, “Iron Man 3” would not involve the Avengers and would focus squarely on Tony Stark.

“We really want to make it Tony’s movie,” said Black. The director also confirmed that Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle would return as Pepper Potts and Rhoades, respectively. A female audience member asked if the rumor that Black Widow was returning to the film was true.

“I’ll check the script and see if that’s in there,” said Black as the audience laughed.

Another audience member asked for Black’s thoughts on the current efforts to remake “Monster Squad.” “Just don’t cock it up!” laughed Black as the audience cracked up again. He then said he hoped that it would do well, but he was not writing the script for it. Black also announced he was working with Warner Brothers starting this year on a TV version of “The Long Kiss Goodnight.” With a sheepish grin Black then admitted that he was addicted to “The Vampire Diaries.”

“I haven’t missed an episode!” Black said as the audience laughed again.

The director also touched on his pet peeve of writers thinking that copying how people speak exactly passed as “natural” dialogue.

“It’s not just natural. What people want is informed acting, informed speech,” said Black.

Turning to the next audience question, Black said he felt Downey Jr. was perfect to play Tony Stark. “Tony is so indelibly Robert,” said Black. “Robert and I share a voice…if I leave a line open, he’ll supply the ending because we both tend to go to the same place with our characters.”

Another audience member wanted to know if doing a big blockbuster like “Iron Man was part of Black’s plan to finance smaller independent films. “It allows me to do my Casey Anthony biopic, yeah. It’s from the child’s point of view,” joked Black as the audience half laughed and half groaned. He then said that films like “Iron Man” were passion projects for him.

“I love indulging the things that made me so happy as a kid,” said Black.

The same audience member wanted to then know if there was a particular “Iron Man” run that will influence “Iron Man 3.”

“I like the storyline where he was rich and there was a villain and then he wins,” said Black as the audience laughed. He added that he went back and read a lot of Iron Man comics as research for the film but, “I cannot speak about the particulars of Iron Man,” said Black.

When asked if Black had any good stories from his time acting on the film “Predator,” he noted that the night before one of the shoots Sonny Landham went out drinking and the next morning developed a bad “case of the runs” before shooting the scene where they realize the Predator is hunting them.

“When I watch the scene, all I think now is that he’s desperately clenching,” laughed Black. He also told the audience that actress Elpidia Carrillo, fed up with being dismissed by her male co-stars and male producers, eventually retaliated by punching Joel Silver in the face.

“It was a fun set!” laughed Black.

While poking fun at Marvel Studios for stretching their budgets to the limits, Black said that Marvel has been good to him, naming Marvel Studio’s Kevin Feige as “terrific.”

“What’s not to like other than a paycheck?” joked Black and the audience laughed. The director added that there will be a Stan Lee cameo in the film, but he does not know what yet. “It will correspond to his schedule, but I don’t know,” said Black, adding that the “Easter egg stuff” was the last thing on his mind when making the film.

“Film is a tinkering medium, you just stop – sorry, Harley Quinn just went by,” laughed Black, derailed to watch the cosplayer walk by the stage.

Speaking to an audience member who asked for advice for aspiring writers, Black told the man to start working with his friends. “Don’t do it alone, it’s a lonely business, writing,” said Black.

The very last audience member to the microphone revealed that he did not have a question he had a statement. “If the Iron Man movie is as great as this panel, it’s going to be a fantastic movie!” said the fan as the audience burst into applause, bringing the panel to a close.

[TheButcher]

SPOILERS
From Latino Review:
EXCLUSIVE: Iron Man 3 Is About…

[TheButcher]

Kingsley in talks for 'Iron Man 3' villain - Insiders deny thesp would play the Mandarin

[TheButcher]

IRON MAN 3 to Be Co-Financed by Chinese Company DMG Entertainment; Filming Begins in Five Weeks

[TheButcher]

Exclusive: Kevin Feige Gives Hints About the Marvel Sequels

"There will be various levels of seeds and Easter eggs," Marvel Studios President of Production Kevin Feige told us in an exclusive interview last week. "The mandate is always to make the best movie possible regardless of where we're heading or what fun little Easter eggs we want to do. The movies have to work in and of themselves, so 'Iron Man' and 'Thor' will be more individualized and more focused just on their stories. 'Captain America' will be a pure Steve Rogers story, but have more in common with the backdrop of 'Avengers.'"

[TheButcher]

Guy Pearce bonds with 'Iron Man 3' - Actor to play geneticist in Marvel sequel

[TheButcher]

Jessica Chastain May Join IRON MAN 3 as Sexy Scientist

[Bloo]

Jessica Chastain May Join IRON MAN 3 as Sexy Scientist

Who's Sexy Scientist? Is she a new Marvel Character? I hope she's both sexy and a scientist

[TheBaxter]

i still haven't seen iron man 2, so i'm not sure about iron man 3
however, i would go to see a Sexy Scientist film in a nanosecond.

[Fievel]

Jessica Chastain May Join IRON MAN 3 as Sexy Scientist

Who's Sexy Scientist? Is she a new Marvel Character? I hope she's both sexy and a scientist

The name fits in a film whose lead hero is called "Iron Man."

[Spandau Belly]

The problem is that I push myself and I can't accept failure. I strived to be the first actress to take up all 5 slots of the best actress and best supporting actress categories in one year, and when that didn't happen I just couldn't handle it. I want to apologize to Merryl Streep for the things I hollered during her acceptance speech and I want to apologize to Rooney Mara for keying up the hood of the Rooneymobile (yes, that was me). As if the guilt and shame I felt wasn't enough, I discovered that during my bender I had signed up for IRON MAN 3. I am currently in a support group and hope that I can put this destructive pattern behind me before I end up in a TRANSFORMERS movie or worse.

I want to thank everybody for their support and urge IMDB to show mercy and leave IRON MAN 3 off my list of credits so that I can heal and move on.

Sincerely,

Jessica Chastain

[Ribbons]

The problem is that I push myself and I can't accept failure. I strived to be the first actress to take up all 5 slots of the best actress and best supporting actress categories in one year, and when that didn't happen I just couldn't handle it. I want to apologize to Merryl Streep for the things I hollered during her acceptance speech and I want to apologize to Rooney Mara for keying up the hood of the Rooneymobile (yes, that was me). As if the guilt and shame I felt wasn't enough, I discovered that during my bender I had signed up for IRON MAN 3. I am currently in a support group and hope that I can put this destructive pattern behind me before I end up in a TRANSFORMERS movie or worse.

I want to thank everybody for their support and urge IMDB to show mercy and leave IRON MAN 3 off my list of credits so that I can heal and move on.

Sincerely,

Jessica Chastain

It looks like somebody stepped in and intervened:

Jessica Chastain Will Not Star in IRON MAN 3

In late April, we learned that Jessica Chastain was eyeing a role in director Shane Black’s Iron Man 3. Well, not entirely unexpectedly, Chastain has had to decline the role due to scheduling difficulties. The role was reportedly that of a “sexy scientist” who rivals Robert Downey Jr.‘s Tony Stark in intelligence. Last year, the incredibly talented Chastain burst onto the scene with roles in seven films including The Tree of Life and The Help. She’s become very in-demand as of late, and her schedule just became too crowded to make room for Iron Man 3.

Chastain posted this statement on her Facebook page:

“Sorry to say that Iron Man 3 isn’t going to work out. My schedule is jammed packed and I can’t fit anything else in. The press announced my possible attachment far too soon. I know many of you wanted me to be involved, and I’m so sorry to disappoint you. Hopefully there’ll be another Marvel film in my future. Shane Black and everyone on the IM3 team are really wonderful. I’m very excited to see the film when it comes out. xx”

I was definitely looking forward to seeing Chastain play around in the Iron Man universe, but hopefully she’ll be able to star in a different Marvel film down the road. She’s currently filming Kathryn Bigelow’s drama about the hunt for Osama Bin Laden, Zero Dark Thirty and she’s poised to star in the drama The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Her.

It’ll be interesting to see who Black and co. nab to fill Chastain’s role in Iron Man 3. The impressive cast already includes newcomers Ben Kingsley and Guy Pearce, so hopefully they choose an actress of the same caliber.

http://collider.com/jessica-chastain-iron-man-3/164626/

[TheButcher]

From MTV:
Will The Hulk Be In 'Iron Man 3'?

[Spandau Belly]

Good job Jess! Keep up the winning streak and leave that role to somebody who doesn't have anything better to do. I'll bet Rachel Nichols or Malin Ackerman are free.

[TheBaxter]

yes, the role of "Sexy Scientist" truly requires a top-caliber actress. they should try to get meryl streep, this role could easily be her next oscar-winning performance. or how about jodie foster? i know she's busy directing these days, but complex, interesting female roles like "Sexy Scientist" don't come around very often in Hollywood, so i'm sure she'd jump at the opportunity.

[minstrel]

Jodie Foster already played Sexy Scientist in Contact. If she appeared as Sexy Scientist in Iron Man 3, it would look like a sequel to Contact, and fans and studio executives would be confused. So it won't happen.

[TheButcher]

Rebecca Hall In Talks For Female Lead In ‘Iron Man 3′

[TheButcher]

Rebecca Hall nabs female lead in 'Iron Man 3' - Disney, Marvel in talks with 'The Town' actress for sequel

Rebecca Hall ("The Town") is in talks to join Marvel Studios and Disney's "Iron Man 3," that starts production this month.

Thesp would play a scientist who plays a pivotal role in the creation of a nanotechnology, known as Extremis, that winds up being sold to terrorists.

Jessica Chastain announced on her Facebook page, on Monday, she would not be playing the part, due to conflicting projects, after press reports prematurely attached her to the pic.

Shane Black is helming and co-writing "Iron Man 3," with Drew Pearce, that brings back Robert Downey Jr. as billionaire Tony Stark and his superhero alter ego Iron Man, along with Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle. Guy Pearce also is on board, while Ben Kingsley is set to play the villain.

Plot will borrow elements from Warren Ellis' six-issue "Iron Man: Extremis," that also heavily influenced the first "Iron Man" pic, and focuses on the spread of a virus through nanotechnology.

Production on the film starts this month in North Carolina before moving to China.

Disney already has skedded to release "Iron Man 3" on May 3, 2013.

The first "Iron Man" earned $585 million worldwide, while the sequel generated $624 million around the globe.

Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Louis D'Esposito, Charles Newirth, Victoria Alonso, Stephen Broussard and Dan Mintz will executive produce "Iron Man 3," with Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige producing the project.

Hall will next be seen in the gambling comedy "Lay the Favorite," which the Weinstein Co. acquired at Sundance. She is currently lensing John Crowley's untitled thriller with Eric Bana for Focus Features.

She is repped by WME and Julian Belfrage Associates.

Marvel Studios declined to comment.

[Spandau Belly]

So IRON MAN 2 gets ScarJo, now IRON MAN 3 goes for Rebecca Hall, since they're using Woody Allen's casting they might as well get him to write and direct this. IRON MAN movies are mostly talky comedies anyway and Allen has experience making movies about cyborgs (SLEEPER).

Although, I'd rather see Allen in ....



He and Stallone have worked together before and it would be nice to see them together again.

[Peven]

considering Shane Black's past work I expect Iron Man 3 to be a buddy movie with Stark and whatever Black actor they get to play War Machine, with Stark playing the psychologically questionable, possibly suicidal "complex" character and War Machine being the grounded, "what the hell are you thinking, you crazy white boy, but I still got your back 'cause I'm solid like that"......that or we'll see Stark come out of the closet, or out of his armor as it were


seriously, i enjoy Lethal Weapon as much as the next guy and The Last Boy Scout probably more than the next guy but I can't be the only one to recognize they they are the same story with a few minor tweaks and parts rearranged. add in "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang" and you still have three buddy movies where the buddies are oddly matched. not exactly a lot of range there. Black is good at that, but I think the fanboy adoration tends to go overboard with heaping claims of his genius. I think he may very well make an enjoyable Iron Man movie but it won't be anything we haven't seen from him before, imo, it will just be dressed up in a super-powered suit of armor

[TheButcher]

"what the hell are you thinking, you crazy white boy, but I still got your back 'cause I'm solid like that".

[TheButcher]

From Heat Vision:
Jon Favreau Talks 'Sexy Scientist,' Praises Joss Whedon for Avengers and Leads 'Revolution'

[TheButcher]

‘Iron Man 3′ Begins Production; Secures Increased Budget

Furthermore, Latino Review is also claiming that Iron Man 3‘s budget has been bumped up from $140 million (similar to that of Thor and Captain America) to $200 million (on a par with Iron Man 2). The logic behind the inflated cost is simple: now that Avengers has grossed more than $1 billion worldwide and picked up lots of critical accolades, Marvel wants Black to deliver not only “a better Iron Man movie but THE BEST Marvel movie, hands down.”

[Ribbons]

'Iron Man 3' Begins Production; Secures Increased Budget

The logic behind the inflated cost, up from $140 million (similar to that of Thor and Captain America) to $200 million, is simple: now that Avengers has grossed more than $1 billion worldwide and picked up lots of critical accolades, Marvel wants Black to deliver "not only a better Iron Man movie but THE BEST Marvel movie, hands down.”

I don't see how this could possibly go wrong...

[King Psyz]

holy fuck buckets!

[ironic name]

holy fuck buckets!

[King Psyz]

So I guess nobody cares that Disney/Marvel has now introduced both HYDRA and AIM into the movieverse?

This is kind of a big deal, they're bringing in the kind of comic book stuff everyone has been afraid of in comic book movies.

And I wouldn't be mad if the operatives looked like this



instead of

[so sorry]

So I guess nobody cares that Disney/Marvel has now introduced both HYDRA and AIM into the movieverse?

This is kind of a big deal, they're bringing in the kind of comic book stuff everyone has been afraid of in comic book movies.

And I wouldn't be mad if the operatives looked like this



instead of

Well outside of the comic book community (*raises hand*) i don't know Hydra from AIM from Shinola. So what's the big deal? Care to explain?

[Ribbons]

I DO read comics and I don't really know. I think AIM is like... Massive Dynamic stuff. And their boss is a giant floating head.

[TheBaxter]

i don't know what the American Indian Movement has to do with iron man... but i'm curious to find out!

[King Psyz]

Well outside of the comic book community (*raises hand*) i don't know Hydra from AIM from Shinola. So what's the big deal? Care to explain?

AIM is like the evil super science group.

It's like a few hundred evil reed richards, tony starks, peter parkers, etc.

Plus they have none of those nasty hangups the good guys have. So you get things like MODOK.

They're like the tech version of HYDRA.

While I don't think they'll be rocking the beekeeper suits (although I'd love to see one in the background or in a display case), this shows Disney/Marvel's willingness to delve deep into the comics. This, and HYDRA, and Thanos at the end of Avengers shows me things are about to get weird in the best of ways.

So maybe we will see Fing Fang Foom at some point, or Nova, Captain Mar Vel, Wonder Man, etc.

[ironic name]

Well outside of the comic book community (*raises hand*) i don't know Hydra from AIM from Shinola. So what's the big deal? Care to explain?

that is all.

[TheButcher]

First Teaser Trailer for IRON MAN 3 Set to Debut October 23

[caruso_stalker217]

Here's the trailer:



I bonered my pants.

[Ribbons]

Hopefully I'm not stating the obvious here, but assuming this movie does follow the Extremis storyline as stated, the suit that grabs Pepper while she and Tony are sleeping is probably empty. A couple frames earlier (nerd alert!) you see Tony wearing the same clothes with a bunch of spare parts scattered about the bed.

Anyway, me likey. Looks like it promises some cool set pieces, as well as a more nuanced take on the stress of being Tony Stark than the last Iron Man. And just maybe one of Ben Kingsley's increasingly rare good performances...?

[Fievel]

I like it too.... it makes me forget that Iron Man 2 happened.

[SilentBobX]

Definitely going with a darker tone, can see it'll be kind of a rise from nothing after having it all type story. Nothing wrong with that but I'm eagerly awaiting this.


Mahalo

[Peven]

I think he dies in the end

[TheButcher]

Producer Kevin Feige Talks IRON MAN 3, How It Relates to THE AVENGERS, The Mandarin, Iron Patriot, and More