So there are rumors flying that Mickey Rourke is in talks to star in Iron Man 2 as the Crimson Dynamo. I don’t know how I feel about this. On the one hand, Rourke is a fine actor who does a good job of playing meat heads. But I think anyone piloting a multi-billion dollar suit of nuclear-powered armor shouldn’t be a meat head. He should be intelligent and a little bit menacing.
I like the idea of using Rourke and his comeback story (courtesy of the critical praise he’s earned from The Wrestler) as a mirror to Robert Downey Jr.’s own career resurrection. But beyond that, it feels like a novelty.
I guess there’s also been reports saying that Rourke could end up playing Whiplash and not the Crimson Dynamo. I see that as a better fit because Whiplash was always a more garish villian. But I think the odds of putting the character in the sequel are slim-to-none. Whiplash was always a second-stringer and the visual appeal of the Dynamo armor is much more interesting.
I’m also not sure what to make of the talk that Sam Rockwell is in talks to play Justin Hammer, a corporate rival to Stark Industries. I like Rockwell in nearly everything he’s been in. He can play a great villain. But I always imagined Justin Hammer to be older. Someone who was jealous of Stark for his genius and his youth. Hammer is the kind of character that felt he should be the bigger fish because he’s been around longer. He doesn’t like Stark because he’s an upstart.
Of course, if you had asked me who I would have cast for Obadiah Stane, I wouldn’t have picked Jeff Bridges, either. So maybe they know what they’re doing.
What do you think about this casting news? Does it get you excited or do you think it’s a gimmick? Or maybe you’re still trying to figure out who Whiplash is. Let me know in the comments!
Crimson Dynamo in general is a bad idea for the first movie after Iron Monger. We just had power suit vs power suit. Iron Man’s rogues gallery is incredibly weak.
I don’t know if suit vs. suit is a bad idea especially if whomever is piloting the Dynamo is experienced. In the first movie, it was a couple of middle-aged executives goin’ at it. In this one, we might get more of a tactical dog fight.
That said, I agree with your statement that Iron Man’s rouge gallery is incredibly weak. And I am a die-hard fan. Tony’s greatest adversary has always been himself.
I wouldn’t say it’s his rogues gallery that’s weak, but that the stories almost always tend to be very similar. What? There’s someone who’s stolen Stark Tech and is using it for ill? Oh, there’s a bitter former employee/rival? Who would think?! I absolutely love Iron Man, but there’s always been a certain amount of stagnation built into the stories.
As for the casting, both sound fine to me. I’d love to see Sam Rockwell in any capacity.