Don Cheadle to Replace Terrence Howard in "Iron Man 2"

By: Adam Quigley Posted: October 14, 2008 Filed under: Casting, Official Info

So much for maintaining the Terrence Howard/Robert Downey Jr. comedic dynamic established in Iron Man.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Don Cheadle will be filling in for Terrence Howard as Col. James 'Rhodey' Rhodes in Iron Man 2, apparently due to "financial differences." By this I'm going to assume that, based on the previous issue over hiring back on director Jon Favreau, Howard felt he was entitled to more money (which he is, since the first film made major bank at the box office and his part in the sequel is guaranteed to be much larger) and then the stingy sons of bitches over at Marvel were too cheap to pay up. From what I can tell, they seem to think actors and directors are completely expendable, and all they care about is relying on the popularity of the comic book brand to sell the material.

As big a fan as I am of Don Cheadle, I can't help but find this news extremely frustrating. It's not that I thought Terrence Howard's performance in Iron Man was a particularly amazing or essential aspect of the film's success, but rather that it felt like an introductory piece until he could really shine in the sequel. I even remember leaving the theater on opening day thinking to myself that the only reason Howard signed on for such a small part in the first film was so that he could kick ass as War Machine in the second. Now, that will never happen. In one foul swoop, all that excitement I had during that blatant wink at comic book fans when Howard looks at the Mark 2 suit and says, "Next time, baby" has been fully and completely eradicated. Worse still, it will act as a constant reminder that when the "next time" Rhodes was referring to comes to fruition, it will be through a completely different actor.