About this time last month, we wrote about how Scarlett Johansson was supposed to be returning to the cast of Iron Man 3. It makes sense, considering all of Marvel’s actors have signed on for multi-picture deals. But immediately before a recent interview with Screen Rant, Johansson said that she would not be appearing in the newest adventure of Tony Stark. But the second one actor leaves, another might step in; NeonPunch reports that Asian cinema superstar Andy Lau (Infernal Affairs) could join the cast. Hit the jump for more.
So ScarJo says she’s hoping for a Black Widow spin-off movie of her own, something reminiscent of Bourne. She says she’s had conversations with Marvel President of Production Kevin Feige and that there’s a ton of material that could provide the basis for a movie, but nothing has been officially announced yet. Rumor has it Feige plans on making an announcement at Comic-Con regarding the second Marvel movie of 2014, so perhaps that’s what it’ll be.
Because of the recent announcement that Iron Man 3 is being partly financed by a Chinese company and filming partially in China, it makes sense that they would bring a popular Asian actor on board the project. Here’s the quote describing who he’ll play:
Andy Lau’s character will be an OLD FRIEND OF TONY STARK’S that represents China’s technology sector – and will use China’s armored heroes to HELP Iron Man defeat “The Mandarin” who is seen as a terrorist against both the US and China.
That seems to contradict reports that Ben Kingsley is NOT going to be playing The Mandarin (a villain in the Iron Man universe), so we’ll have to wait and see how this all shakes out to get more clarification. Filming begins soon, so we’ll expect some updates in the new few months. Lau would be the latest addition to a stellar cast which includes Ben Kingsley, Jessica Chastain, Guy Pearce, and returning members Downey, Paltrow, and Cheadle. What do you think about this casting switch? Bummed about ScarJo’s absence? Excited about Lau’s involvement? Both?
