After a lot of rumors and negotiations around upcoming “Iron Man 2,” it has now been confirmed that both Mickey Rourke and Scarlett Johansson have officially committed to roles.
For months now, it has been debated as to whether or not Mickey Rourke was going to end up playing a villain in Iron Man 2. Now, Nikki Finke at Deadline Hollywood says that Rourke has signed a casting deal for the sequel.
For those coming in to the saga now, Rourke was originally confirmed to play a villain in the film, although reports disagreed as to whether he was playing Whiplash or the Crimson Dynamo. Then the word came out that Rourke was out, after Marvel made an insultingly low offer of $250K for his role in the film. Now it seems that Rourke's agent managed to get the payday up to a more significant level.
Regarding Johannson, she has now officially replaced Emily Blunt as the Russian superspy Natasha Romanoff (aka Black Widow). But unlike Rourke, her deal turned out to be a terrible one.
One source said:
It's as bad as any deal that I've heard. It's lowball money. And it ties her to countless movies, including that ensemble The Avengers, which is what makes this brutal for a lot of actors.
Filming on “Iron Man 2” starts in April, with a release date set for a May 7, 2010 release. The cast includes Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Jon Favreau, Sam Rockwell and Samuel L. Jackson.
Mickey Rourke will be a great addition to the Iron Man crew; he’s a really talented actor despite all the other drama he attracts to himself