After the surprise hit of the first film, expectations are high for Iron Man 2, leaving the makers of the sequel with a greater challenge this time around.Lots of details have been trickling in from ComicBookMovie.com here and here.
The trick will be to make enough changes that the second film will be a different experienced but not so many that it will deviate from what made the first Iron Man such a hit. The rumor is that Iron Man 2 will be a darker affair and perhaps a bit grimmer in tone. In the trailers so far we have seen that the villainous Whiplash seeks to ‘punish’ Stark for his arrogance.
From reading between the lines regarding the use of the Mandarin (hinted at in the first movie), it seems that Stark will find himself confronted by enemies all over the world that he attempts to face on his own. Turning away from rich weapons developer to global peacekeeper, Stark will be waging his own personal war on terrorism. Meanwhile S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury is building his team of Avengers with the possibility that we may see a couple of them from the mutant Scarlet Witch to Hawkeye the bowman. The Black Widow, an undercover Russian agent posing as Stark’s assistant, adds another threat to a film already crowded with villains. It seems that the face-off against the Mandarin may be held off for the third film if audiences are appreciative of such a thing.
As he experiences pressure from Congress to turn over his technology to the US, something that he refuses to do, it becomes clear that Stark has taken on far more than he can handle. Rhodey will join forces with Justin Hammer and become War Machine with possible implication of a face off with his old friend but as we can see in the screen shot above, they will have an entire army of armored enemies to join forces against.
The previous film concluded with Stark exposing himself as Iron Man. In the sequel, we will see the brilliant businessman buckling under the strain of being a public superhero and turning to alcohol for comfort. As a vice that is part of his playboy lifestyle becomes more of a crutch, the movie will explore similar themes that were explored in the comic back in the classic 1980′s story line ‘Demon in the Bottle.’
Known for his many armor redesigns over the years, it looks like moviegoers will see yet another version of Iron Man as the Mark IV armor is debuted sporting a triangular chest design. There are thoughts that this may hint at the Warren Ellis-penned ‘Extremis’ story in which Stark become bonded to his Iron Man tech and developed into a superhuman being able to control various technology by thought alone.
As the crew begin filming the final sequences for Iron Man 2, director John Favreau is desperate to retain some kind of secrecy on the few surprises that are in store. Nevertheless, he had a few nuggets to share.
On a War Machine spin-off: “Hopefully, if this one goes well, there’ll be another [Iron Man film] with the same people. But there won’t be a War Machine spin-off.”
On the identity of Mickey Rourke’s Whiplash: “For those of you who know the books, we’re combining some characters in a way that stays true to the books but keeps you guys guessing a little bit. We combined Whiplash and [Anton] Vanko [the Crimson Dynamo].”
On the tone of Iron Man 2: “A lot of people wondered if we were going to follow the ‘Demon in a Bottle’ storyline [but] the tone in the first film isn’t as dark as what’s explored in the books. What we did want to go into was how he struggles with his own identity in the face of being a larger than life character who is. in fact, saving the world.”
On the possible Marvel Team-Ups: “We’re going to be looking at Tony needing help, working with other people. One of our themes is that no man is an island,” said Jon Favreau. Downey gives a bit more detail about how that theme will appear on film, “At a certain point, Tony is approached by Nick Fury, who is wondering what it’s like for him not to have any backup.”
As to be revealed in an upcoming issue of Wizard:
- Iron Man 2 opens showing Tony Stark facing a major struggle where both his mood and armor are grimy and ragged.
- Favreau has confirmed that the exoskeleton armor Whiplash wears in the film’s trailer is his “first attempt at technology”.
- Black Widow wasn’t the only option for Scarlett Johansson to play, Favreau was considering her for the role of Wanda Maximoff, better known as the Scarlett Witch.
- Mickey Rourke felt that his character (Whiplash) should have a pet, just as a way to humanize him. After much discussion, a Cockatoo joined the crew.
