For those asking about why Howard is gone...
When it was announced that
Terrence Howard was out of "
Iron Man 2" and that
Don Cheadlewould be taking over the role of James "Rhodey" Rhodes, the question on
most observers' minds was "Why?" The first film was an enormous
success, turning a little-known Marvel Comics character into a
household name and raking in $318 million domestically. Howard received
solid reviews for his work in the film. And the movie itself seemed to
indicate that Rhodey would have a bigger part in the sequel when he
looked at the silver Mark II suits and said to himself, "Next time,
baby."
Terrence Howard himself seemed at a loss as to why he was replaced, telling
NPRthat getting the news was "the surprise of a lifetime." Initial reports
said that negotiations between Howard's representatives and Marvel
Studios "fell through over financial differences," but a recent article
in Entertainment Weekly suggests it was more complicated than that.
Howard was the first actor signed to the film and, on
top of that, was the highest-paid. That's right: more than Gwyneth
Paltrow. More than Jeff Bridges. More than Robert Downey Jr. And once
the project fully came together, it was too late to renegotiate his
deal.
Director
Jon Favreau told
Ain't It Cool Newsbefore shooting even began that he had cast Howard with the intention
of giving Rhodey a bigger role in the sequels, eventually getting his
own suit of mechanized armor to become "War Machine." But according to
EW's source, "Favreau and his producers were ultimately unhappy with
Howard's performance, and spent a lot of time cutting and reshooting
his scenes."
Consequently, as Favreau and screenwriter
Justin Therouxbegan the process of structuring the second movie, they reduced the
scale of Rhodey's part. With the role pared down, Marvel presented
Howard's agents with a much smaller offer than he received for the
first movie.
The agents, according to sources, were so taken aback
by this new figure - estimated at somewhere between a 50 and 80 percent
pay cut - that they questioned it. Why did they blanch? Multiple
sources say that Marvel execs never told Howard's reps that they had
issues with the star's on-set conduct.
While
Marvel refused to comment on why Howard was replaced, they did
officially announce last week that not only would Don Cheadle play
Rhodes in "Iron Man 2," but also in "
The Avengers" movie.
Robert Downey Jr.also signed for the sequel and the spin-off that will team Tony Stark
up with other heroes like Thor, Captain America and the Hulk. Marvel
Studios president Kevin Feige said in a press release, "It has already
become apparent as we prep the movie for production, that the dynamic
between Robert and Don will take 'Iron Man 2' to new heights."
"Iron Man 2" will begin filming in March of next year with a release
scheduled for May 7, 2010. "The Avengers" is slated to open July 15,
2011.