Jon Favreau has
reportedly told Marvel execs this morning that he won't be the man to direct
Iron Man 3, which currently has a projected
May 3rd, 2013 release date. The rumoured decision isn't at all surprising given the rocky relationship Favreau and the studio have shared over the past few years which really boiled over when disagreements occurred over the creative and financial package of
Iron Man 2. Eventually Favreau got the pay deal he wanted (reports say as much as $10 million plus around 10% of the final gross, which added to
Robert Downey Jr's deal is a helluva lot of outgoings on talent) but perhaps he didn't win the creative battles, as his direction on the sequel looked tired, his imagination watered down and his interest seemed somewhere else entirely. Was the lack of interest over Marvel's insistence on building towards
The Avengers so heavily, making his film little more than expository for the bigger things that were to come? I'd say so. Certainly no-one could deny there was a clear lack of focus shown in Iron Man 2.
Vulture have heard from insiders that a major factor in Favreau's decision today is Disney forcing post-Avengers characters in Iron Man 3, which I don't doubt, but I also think part of the problem is the quick production turnaround as Iron Man 3 is set to go in front of camera's in 2012, probably before
The Avengers is released in cinema's in May of that year. That's a mighty tough schedule to follow.
So where does this leave the third Iron Man movie? Personally, if I were Marvel, I would delay that 2013 release by a year. There's no need to rush another Iron Man film into production when they have so many other lucrative properties they could pull the trigger on and you can't under estimate Favreau's input in getting this franchise off the ground in the first place. The Iron Man films are his cast (including the phenomenal casting of Downey Jr in the first place), the look, the tone of the universe... everything, really. There would be no Avengers without him. He has had as much input on Iron Man as for example
Chris Nolan has on
Batman and
J.J. Abrams on
Star Trek. Having said all this, it's important for Marvel to now achieve two things; 1) They need to keep Robert Downey Jr. sweet and interested despite the loss of his friend. In participating in The Avengers he has already showed he is willing to play Tony Stark for other directors that aren't Favreau, so I don't think this is out of the question. 2) They need to find a trustworthy name soon to avoid a Batman & Robin situation and Marvel don't have a lot of those in their family.
Louis Letterier (Incredible Hulk) certainly ain't going to cut it and can they really give this to
Kenneth Branagh (Thor) or
Joe Johnston (Captain America) without seeing how their Marvel debuts turn out?
Joss Whedon won't be able to do it because he is making The Avengers. But at least with Favreau making this decision early, Marvel have at least a few months to find a successor, though interestingly Downey Jr has 'director approval' written in his contract. We know
Guy Ritchie (Sherlock Holmes) is Downey Jr approved. Just sayin' as a wild stab in the dark.