Last week we heard that Jon Favreau was aiming for a July start with Cowboys and Aliens, a film which explores what would happen if the traditional Old West enemies – cowboys and Native Americans – found the prairie attacked by aliens in mid-1800s Arizona. Robert Downey Jr. was going to be teaming up with his Iron Man director once again as gunslinger Zeke Jackson, however according to The L.A. Times Downey has had to drop out of film due to schedule conflicts (and because he’s realised he’s turning into a franchise whore).
The actor, who had been poised to reunite with “Iron Man” director Jon Favreau for the science-fiction western “Cowboys & Aliens,” won’t star in the film.
The movie, sources say, will still move forward with Favreau. But Downey has fallen off the project, and studio DreamWorks is seeking a new hero to replace him. Production is tentatively set to begin this year for a planned release in summer 2011.
Downey was set to play the gunslinger Zeke Jackson, who leads the anti-alien revolt.Cowb But scheduling issues — Downey’s been one of the busier actors in Hollywood — forced a re-think. The project would have marked a third potential franchise a resurgent Downey would have been involved with, after “Iron Man” and “Sherlock Holmes,” which is expected to spawn a sequel.
The reason for dropping out could be linked to Sherlock Holmes 2, which Warner Bros. may want to start developing as the film has made around $300 million worldwide so far.
