20 facts you might not know about 'Iron Man 3'

As you likely know, Disney ended up buying Marvel and becoming the home of Marvel films by and large. However, the Marvel Cinematic Universe was born before Marvel was a Disney property. As such, the first two Iron Man films were Paramount releases. So, what was Disney to do? Well, after Iron Man 2, Disney paid Paramount somewhere in the range of $115 million for the worldwide distribution rights to Iron Man 3. That’s a hefty chunk of change. Would it end up being worth it? (Spoiler alert: Um, yeah.)

Jon Favreau directed the first two Iron Man movies, but there were rumors after the second one Favreau was having issues with producers at Marvel. Maybe that is true, but Favreau did announce in 2010 that he would not return to direct Iron Man 3. He was working on a Magic Kingdom movie for Disney at the time that never came to fruition, and he remains cool with Marvel’s owners at Disney, as he is over on The Mandalorian these days.

One of Downey’s first comeback movies was Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, written and directed by Shane Black. Black also was brought in to give advice on Iron Man 2. When Favreau stepped away, Downey turned to Black, and Black returned to do a bit more than consult. He agreed to direct Iron Man 3 and to work on the script.

In 2010, Marvel hired Drew Pearce to write a screenplay for an adaptation of Runaways. That never came to fruition, but it got Pearce inside the inner circle at Marvel. Pearce and Black co-wrote Iron Man 3, making this Pearce’s film writing debut.

Obviously, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is full of superpowers and sci-fi elements. Black was less interested in that. He said he didn’t want his film to be “two men in iron suits fighting each other” and compared it to a Tom Clancy thriller. Pearce, meanwhile, described the film as a “techno-thriller” that would not involve space or magic.

If Black writes or directs a film, you’d better believe Christmas will be involved. From the beginning with “Lethal Weapon,” Black has always included Christmas in his movies. Black and Pearce both gave justifications for why Iron Man 3 is set around Christmas, but it’s just a Black trademark.

The Mandarin is the most famous of the Iron Man villains from the comics, and he had been in consideration from the first movie. However, Favreau felt the character was too big to introduce off the bat. Then, there’s the fact that the comic-book version of the Mandarin wouldn’t exactly pass modern muster. Pearce pitched the idea of the Mandarin being a fake out, and Black came up with the idea he would be an actor playing a role.

Initially, there would have been a twist on a twist. Not only would the Mandarin be a false front, but Rebecca Hall’s Maya Hansen would be revealed as the true mastermind instead of Guy Pearce’s Aldrich Killian. Reportedly, Marvel executives were worried that a female villain would hurt merchandising sales, thus, Killian became the ultimate big bad of the movie.

Ben Kingsley ends up playing the Mandarin, and Trevor Slattery, the actor who plays the Mandarin, but he wasn’t the only name in the mix. Anthony Mackie auditioned for the role, and while he didn’t get it, he ended up playing Sam Wilson, a.k.a. Falcon.

Jessica Chastain was in talks to play Maya, perhaps at a time when she was going to be the main villain. It would have been odd for an actress of her stature to play the role otherwise. However, Chastain dropped out due to scheduling conflicts, opening the door for Hall to take the part.

Emilia Clarke, a.k.a. Danaerys from Game of Thrones, could have been in Iron Man 3. In fact, she was even cast in an unknown role. Then, the script changed, and Clarke’s part was removed from the film.

Favreau may not have directed, but he did return in his role as Happy Hogan, a bit of comedic relief in the Marvel world. In this film, we find out Happy’s favorite show is Downton Abbey. Favreau suggested this, as he is a big fan of that series in real life.

President Ellis is named after Warren Ellis. That Ellis is a comic book writer and wrote the “Extremis” arc in the Iron Man comics that served as the basis for Iron Man 3, making it a fitting homage.

Tom Cruise isn’t the only leading man who puts his body on the line for his movies, sometimes to the movie's detriment. Downey suffered an ankle injury while filming Iron Man 3 that stopped the film for about 10 days. During that time, Black and Pearce did more script revisions.

Initially, Trevor Slattery dies at the film's end. However, it didn’t exactly land, with Pearce comparing it to Monty Python. They decided to keep Slattery alive during editing and did some reshoots to make that happen.

Memorably, the first film in this series culminates with Tony Stark declaring, “I am Iron Man.” In a twist on that, Black originally planned to have Iron Man 3 end with him saying, “I am Tony Stark.” Ultimately, it was decided to make it a recurrence of “I am Iron Man” instead.

That $115 million that Disney paid Paramount? It paid off. Iron Man 3 was made with a budget of $200 million. It then made $408 million domestically, bringing in $1.22 billion worldwide. Iron Man 3 was the 16th film ever to cross the billion-dollar mark, and it was the second-highest-grossing film of 2013.

Like its predecessor, Iron Man 3 got one nomination from the Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects. It did not win, but the film and Downey had success elsewhere, winning big at the People’s Choice, Teen Choice, and Saturn Awards.

Keeping Slattery alive did lead to one thing being possible, and that’s a short film starring the character. One of Marvel’s “One Shot” movies, Slattery is the lead character in All Hail the King, a follow-up to Iron Man 3 focuses on Slattery’s life in prison after being exposed as the Mandarin. That short is written and directed by Pearce.

Trilogies feel tidy, but it’s hard not to try and milk a cash cow for all its worth. Naturally, there was talk of an Iron Man 4 for a while. However, in 2014, Downey said there were no plans for such a film. After Avengers: Endgame, it feels quite likely we have indeed seen the last Iron Man movie.