Jon Favreau Says No to Iron Man 3

Posted by on December 14th, 2010   Filed under: Action, Books/Comics, Industry News, Sci-fi
Source: Vulture

Update: Favreau has gone on to explain his decision for leaving the Iron Man franchise in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. He clarifies that his reason for leaving was not due to money or a lack of cohesiveness in the series and that he parted with Marvel on good terms. Favreau’s real reason for leaving was so that he could pursue other projects that he has a passion for. He’s quoted as saying he wants something that will “blow people away, which is easier to do with a project that isn’t loaded with built-in expectations.” He has wished Marvel the best and looks forward to seeing “what others can do playing in the same world.”

Apparently Jon Favreau has had enough with the Marvel universe, officially telling the company that he will not return for another Iron Man sequel. Right now it’s unclear why Favreau decided to leave the popular franchise, although insiders have already begun proposing some theories. One source has said he was frustrated over Marvel’s urging to cram even more in-house characters into the next film, especially after The Avengers hits theaters. A quote from a recent interview contributes to that sentiment: “This whole world … I have no idea what it is. I don’t think they do either, from conversations I’ve had with those guys.” Still, others are saying that Favreau’s price tag was too high for Marvel. That could very well be the case considering the lengthy negotiations the director underwent for Iron Man 2. Whatever the case may be for Favreau’s exit, Marvel has already begun searching for a new director to tackle the third chapter in the Iron Man series. There’s currently no script for the movie and filming won’t start until 2012.

While Favreau may not be on board the Marvel train anymore, he’s still working for Disney, Marvel’s parent company, on Magic Kingdom, so he’ll stay busy with that. I can’t really blame him for wanting to leave the franchise at this point. Iron Man 2 was crowded enough and I can only imagine what the third film will bring. It’s worth noting that finding a replacement director might not be so easy for Marvel, since Robert Downey Jr. has director approval written into his contract. Since this news just broke, there are many questions left to answer. For instance, will Favreau reprise his role of Happy Hogan? How will his departure effect the casting on the sequel? Who do you think Marvel will get to direct now? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.



  • Jason Mason Nason

    Good, cause he sucks as a director!

  • Hugh

    In the picture above, he looks pretty cheesed off and as though, he is saying goodbye to those other cast members.

    Maybe he has left because of being told that it was Dress Down Friday and feeling really stupid turning up dressed in his casual clothes when everyone else was dressed very formally.

  • Idontknowwhattowrite

    well now he can get to work on an elf sequel, that’s good news.

  • Mark In Ottawa

    Cue the Jay Cheel rumors …..

  • @Hugh haha.

    And I’m all for another Elf sequel.

  • Maopheus

    I don’t him for leaving. These Avenger-verse films seem to have adopted a house style anyway. They don’t need anyone for some kind of special vision or look. Not that Favreau is some kind of auteur or anything. But their films seem to rather plug-and-play. At least the first films need somebody with some kind of vision to get things going, but the subsequent sequels don’t need a whole lot of direction.

  • Ben

    Maopheus, considering the fact that the only “Avenger-verse” films we’ve seen have been Iron Man and Hulk (and the Thor trailer?), neither of which seemed very similar to the other, I don’t know exactly where you’re deriving your opinion from.

    I just hope Favreau stays on as Happy Hogan.

  • Maopheus

    True there haven’t been a lot of movies, so you can’t really put a stamp on any kind of style per se. I’m just saying that with all of the tie-ins between the different characters that there is going to be less and less room for individual vision and direction. They will all serve to further the larger cause of the Avengers. For example, the director of Captain America is Joe Johnston. About as generic as generic can be. His last movie “The Wolfman” didn’t leave a lot of people with much confidence in him given all the delays and then the rather haphazard final product. We’ll see I guess. I like the choice of Whedon for Avengers, but I think Favreau sees the writing on the wall. The individual character movies will be less important. It’s kind of bad when Iron Man 2’s ending essentially devalues him in the Avengers completely. Boy, talk about establishing absolutely no heat for that movie.

  • I still think he should make another Swingers/Made movie, I figured that’s why he made Couples retreat was to make money to make a good passion project.

    And he doesn’t suck as a director, you suck at leaving comments and that’s not his fault.