Sources: Comingsoon.net, MTV, CHUD, etc.
During a press event held to promote the September 30 release of “Iron Man” on DVD, writer/director Jon Favreau had quite a bit to say about the film’s much-anticipated sequel, as well as the story that will potentially lead into a third “Iron Man” film.
--Favreau, who admires long-form storytelling, has clearly given extensive thought to big-screen franchises, speaking in detailed terms about what worked and what didn't in the "The Lord of the Rings," "Spider-Man" and "X-Men" trilogies, and he expects to find storylines and themes that will carry through the second film and conclude in a third. He said he doesn't foresee any problems devoting the bulk of his filmmaking efforts to seeing the franchise through to the end.
--Robert Downey, Jr. (Tony Stark/Iron Man), Gwyneth Paltrow (Pepper Potts) and Terrence Howard (James "Rhodey" Rhodes) are all on board for the sequel and enthusiastic about revisiting their characters. And Favreau will be back on screen as well as behind the camera, with a (possibly expanded) role as Happy Hogan.
--He recently met with Downey at the actor's home and discussed at length the kind of character beats and moments he hopes to have when he returns to the character. Downey also introduced Favreau to actor/screenwriter Justin Theroux, who impressed Downey with his work on the actor's second summer hit Tropic Thunder, and Theroux is now working with Favreau to develop the story.
--Iron Man's classic comic book nemesis the Mandarin, the Asian crimelord who sports ten powerful ring weapons (alluded to in the first film through references to the terrorist cell the Ten Rings) will most likely emerge as a primary antagonist, although Favreau is still wrestling with how to address the villain's mystical origins and fit them into the high-tech world established in the debut film. It's also possible the Mandarin may not be fully revealed as the "Big Bad" until a possible third film to avoiding overexposing a potentially intriguing enemy .
--Favreau plans to follow the first film's themes of integrating social and political themes into the adventure and fantasy, and he hinted at a current global situation providing some inspiration – possibly an allusion to plans to utilize Iron Man's Russian counterpart, the Crimson Dynamo.
--Impressed by the use of IMAX footage in The Dark Knight, Favreau's very open to including both IMAX and 3-D sequences in the sequel.
--The most well-known storylines from the comic book series – "Demon in a Bottle," in which Stark becomes an alcoholic, and Rhodey taking over the role and armor of Iron Man during Stark's recovery – are expected to be included, possibly both in the second sequel. Rhodey's role in the first film was not as expansive as originally intended, and Favreau expects to rectify that.
--Favreau is also having designs developed for Rhodey's "War Machine" armor, and even more upgraded and tricked-out versions of Stark's suit may be utilized.
--Marvel's current plans to set its upcoming slate of films – including Iron Man 2, Captain America, Thor and The Avengers – in the same shared universe as Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk is a tricky but still inviting prospect for Favreau, who plans to utilize his improvisational background to find clever ways to integrate certain elements of the other films into the sequels, enhancing and not disrupting his own storytelling needs. He thinks Cap and Hulk fit fairly easily into Iron Man's world, while Thor is more of a challenge.
--The director is finding a degree of inspiration in comic book writer Matt Faction's current run on "The Invincible Iron Man," which he feels in turn found inspiration from his film.
