Iron Man 2

Iron Man 2 is an upcoming 2010 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name from Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures. It is the sequel to 2008's Iron Man, and the second film in a planned trilogy. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey Jr. reprising his role as Tony Stark, an industrialist and master engineer, also known as the superhero Iron Man. The film is scheduled to be released in the UK on April 30 and in North America on May 7, 2010.

Plot
The world is aware that billionaire inventor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is the armored superhero Iron Man. Under pressure from the government, the press, and the public to share his technology with the military, Tony is unwilling to divulge the secrets behind the Iron Man armor because he fears the information will slip into the wrong hands. With Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), and James "Rhodey” Rhodes (Don Cheadle) at his side, Tony forges new alliances and confronts powerful new forces.

Directed by	Jon Favreau
Produced by	Kevin Feige Avi Arad (uncredited) Susan Downey
Written by	Justin Theroux Stan Lee (Comic book) Larry Lieber (Comic book) Don Heck (Comic book) Jack Kirby (Comic book)
Starring	Robert Downey Jr. Don Cheadle Mickey Rourke Gwyneth Paltrow Scarlett Johansson Sam Rockwell Samuel L. Jackson
Music by	John Debney Tom Morello
Cinematography	Matthew Libatique
Editing by	Dan Lebental Richard Pearson
Studio	Marvel Studios
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	02010-04-29 April 29, 2010 (Australia) 02010-04-30 April 30, 2010 (United Kingdom) 02010-05-07 May 7, 2010 (United States)
Running time	124 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Cast

• Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark / Iron Man: The head of Stark Industries, inventor and the film's eponymous superhero and protagonist.

• Don Cheadle as Lt. Colonel James "Rhodey" Rhodes / War Machine: Cheadle replaces Terrence Howard from the first film. Howard said, "There was no explanation, apparently the contracts that we write and sign aren't worth the paper that they're printed on sometimes. Promises aren't kept, and good faith negotiations aren't always held up." Entertainment Weekly stated Favreau did not enjoy working with Howard, often reshooting and cutting his scenes; Howard's publicist said he had a good experience playing the part, while Marvel chose not to comment. As Favreau and Theroux chose to minimize the role, Marvel came to Howard to discuss lowering his salary – Howard was the first actor hired in Iron Man and earned the largest salary of the cast. The publication stated they were unsure whether Howard's representatives left the project first or if Marvel chose to stop negotiating. Theroux denied the part of the report stating "the role of War Machine was scaled back and then beefed up". Cheadle only had a few hours to accept the role and did not even know what storyline Rhodes would undergo. He commented he is a comic book fan, but had not previously participated in comics-themed films due to the lack of black superheroes.

• Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko / Whiplash: This version of the character includes elements of both Blacklash and Crimson Dynamo from the comics. In the film, he will be the son of Russian scientist Anton Vanko, who, in the comics, is the original Crimson Dynamo and creator of said armor. Downey offered Rourke the part during a roundtable discussion with David Ansen at the 2009 Golden Globes, and Rourke met with Favreau and Theroux to discuss his character's role. Rourke almost dropped out of the role due to Marvel's initial salary offer of $250,000, so the studio chose to increase the deal. Rourke researched for the part by visiting Butyrka prison. He suggested half of the character's dialogue be in Russian.

• Gwyneth Paltrow as Virginia "Pepper" Potts: Stark's closest friend, budding love interest, and business partner after Pepper replaced Obadiah Stane as CEO of Stark Industries.

• Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow: An undercover spy for S.H.I.E.L.D. posing as Stark's assistant. Johansson was cast after a scheduling conflict forced Emily Blunt to drop out of the part.

• Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer: Rockwell was considered for the role of Tony Stark in the first film, and he accepted the role of Hammer without reading the script. He had never heard of the character before he was contacted about the part, and was unaware Hammer is an old man in the comics, whereas in the film he will be significantly closer to Stark's age. Originally thought to be a major antagonist, Rockwell says his character is "plucky comic relief, but he’s got a little bit of an edge".

• Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury: Jackson initially had financial problems with Marvel and was unsure about reprising the part of Fury, until they reached a deal that would entail his appearance in up to nine films as the character.