Timothy Olyphant, Sam Rockwell Could Have Been MCU’s Iron Man

Matt Martin

Iron Man

Timothy Olyphant was one of the frontrunners for the role of Iron Man in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe before Robert Downey Jr came along.

The star of Justified and Deadwood was the actor “everyone was rooting for” according to new book MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, as reported by Time.

Kevin Feige, Marvel producer, fancied Olyphant for the role, or Sam Rockwell - who did appear in Iron Man 2 - until Robert Downey Jr grabbed the role on his rebound from substance abuse and legal problems.

It could have been Olyphant behind that mask.<p>Marvel</p>
It could have been Olyphant behind that mask.

Marvel

Also considered at one point - way before the Iron Man movie we know got off the ground - was Tom Cruise. But even twenty-plus years ago the leading man and star of Top Gun was commanding too much money for a then unproven superhero flick.

EA is currently working on an Iron Man game, with the development team behind the excellent Dead Space beavering away at Tony Stark’s solo action outing. It’s being made with a community council advising and offering feedback on the process, but it’s still in the early pre-production phase so don’t expect it anytime soon.

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