Marvel Studios made it official yesterday, announcing that Iron Man 2 is now a sure thing. That means it’s time to start thinking about what direction they’ll go for the sequel, and don’t think for a minute that Marvel doesn’t already have plans.
Tonight I got a message from a long time friend of the site, and one of our most spot on, regular scoopers. She’s had her ears out, and tells us she knows some of the things currently being considered for the next Iron Man movie.
Apparently the Samuel L. Jackson cameo after the credits in Iron Man wasn’t just a throwaway. Our scooper says his Nick Fury character will figure prominently into the next movie. One of the plot lines being pushed for the sequel has Jackson’s Nick Fury character enlisting the help of Tony Stark in going after a terrorist called The Mandarin.
If you know anything about Iron Man outside the movie, then you know that The Mandarin is one of his most notorious villains. The movie actually alludes to him. The terrorist group which captures Tony Stark at the beginning of the film is named “The Ten Rings”, a reference to the ten rings of power the Mandarin seeks in the comics.
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We don’t know if the ten rings will still be a part of the character, but our scooper does say he’ll “have a monster at his disposal by the name of Fin Fang Foom.” That might be a nice change of pace. Give Iron Man something to fight besides his mirror image in a bigger suit. Meanwhile Fin Fang Foom also plays a role in Iron Man comic lore. In the comics, he’s an extraterrestrial dragon.
In addition to new bad guys, our source says they may be planning to involve other superheroes in the film. Maybe in the form of the cameo Iron Man is supposed to do later this summer in The Incredible Hulk. Chief among those is Thor, who may show up in more than just a cameo, possibly helping Iron Man. Thor has his own movie coming out the same summer Iron Man 2 hits, so that makes a certain kind of sense. It would be a way for Marvel to get people interested in a superhero franchise which, really isn’t as high-profile. Other possible superhero cameos include Hawkeye and Black Widow.
While our source for this is tried and true, please keep in mind that none of this is final yet. It’s still very very early in the Iron Man 2 production phase. With no script yet, anything could change, and with Iron Man 2 not being released till 2010, we’re going to have plenty of time to talk about it.
