Why Won't Terrence Howard be in 'Iron Man 2'? Money and More…
This all seems sort of harsh if you ask me...
Photo: Paramount Pictures, manipulated by Brad Brevet
Wanna know why Terrence Howard won't be coming back for Iron Man 2? I know you do and I am wondering if those that were down on the switch to Don Cheadle will think differently once they learn what Entertainment Weekly has to tell us or if they still think Howard got the shaft.
Here is the skinny as reported by "EW" in a slightly paraphrased fashion:
Howard was the first actor signed to the film and, on top of that, was the highest-paid… more than Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges [and] Robert Downey Jr. And once the project fully came together, it was too late to renegotiate his deal. It didn't help that, according to one source, Favreau and his producers were ultimately unhappy with Howard's performance, and spent a lot of time cutting and reshooting his scenes.
As such, when Favreau and screenwriter Justin Theroux went to map out the sequel they found themselves minimizing Howard's story line. Once Marvel learned that Favreau was thinking of curtailing the role, the studio went to the actor's agents with a new and drastically reduced offer — a number that's similar to what supporting cast members were paid for the first movie. The agents, according to sources, were so taken aback by this new figure — estimated at somewhere between a 50 and 80 percent pay cut — that they questioned it.
It's unclear whether Howard's team walked away first, or if Marvel ended the discussion at that point. Either way, the studio moved quickly to secure Cheadle and the story leaked out the next morning, Oct. 14. And alas for Howard, there will be no next time.
Outside of saying Favreau wasn't particularly happy with Howard's performance the article mildly insinuates he was also a problem on the set, but since those claims seem to be unsubstantiated I removed them from the information above, but you can get the full details here.
It sounds to me like it came down to money and if this report is true I have to assume the role is reduced drastically, because I see no other reason why Howard wouldn't agree to a lower pay check since talk of a spin-off film featuring his character have been floating around ever since film went into production.
Does this mean War Machine has a minimized role in the next film? No role? Are they rewriting now that Cheadle is aboard? We will have to wait and see, but outside of money complaints I feel like there must be a few holes in EW's report.
When asked about being dropped from the flick Howard was recently quoted in an interview saying, "It was the surprise of a lifetime. There was no explanation. [The contract] just…up and vanished. I read something in the trades implicating that it was about money or something, but apparently the contracts that we write and sign aren't worth the paper that they're printed on, sometimes. Promises aren't kept, and good faith negotiations aren't always held up."
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If you can't get the perfomance that's needed for the film and so much so that you have to alter the story (so basically compromising the film) I can imagin you're not to happy with someone.
A good agent that made him highest paid in the first one when his roll was pretty small. A bad agent that lost him the sequal and a possible spin-of of his own.
But it all seems to be hear-say. So it's a bit hard to judge.
I want to boycott Iron Man2 now. I love Don Cheadle as an actor but Terrance Howard was a perfect Rhody coming from a comic book standpoint. Howard has the stature age and (vocal inflections) at least in my mind, he would have been the perfect WAR MACHINE. Maybe that was it maybe Howard was too young and had to much of a playboy look next to an older Robert Downey J.R (who was a great choice for IronMan). Whereas Don Cheadle is a bit more mature looking himself and wont overshadow Tony Starks swagger.
everyone is entitled to their own opinion so here is mine:
"Actor wanna be" should not watch Ironman 2 for the simple reason that he though Terrance Howard epitomized who the Rhody character would be, translated onto the screen.
To think that anyone who is an avid fan of the James Rhodes character could honestly say they see Howard as the man for the job makes him little more than a disillusioned casting director. I mean, let's be honest, Ironman was popular because of Downey and the comic book following. Do a poll for who agreed with Howard being cast and it would be a minority.
Ever heard of Michael Jai White? Or if all else fails, Roger Cross for heavens sake. Denzel would've been sweet but who are we kidding. When you read the comics, watch the animated movies and follow the TV series, there's no chance anyone would see Terrance Howard reverse-adapted for either comic, TV or animated feature. My opinion is the other two would be a easier sell.
In saying all that, I don't believe Don was a good call. I hate the power-plays that go on behind the scenes when producers shake hands with this guy cos they know him from this movie or like him because they go way back.
It would honestly just be nice to see them cast someone as relevant to the character of James Rhody as they did with Downey. Now obviously, we can wait until the cows come home but a successful spin-off with either Terrance or Don is…well…let's just say, I wouldn't be talking it up.
So with the rant over, I challenge any Ironman comic buffs to refute my claims in traditional fanatical fashion otherwise, I'm right, your wrong and I can't wait to see how AWESOME Captain America is going to be! Oh, and Thor too!
Ok let's get real here! Terence Howard in my opioion is a very fine actor and so too is Don Chedlle. Let's face it, Don just was not the man to fill the role. Don't get me wrong, Don is a very fine actor too, but I just don't think that this was the role for him. The role of Rhody needed to be filled by a man of stature, who could convince us thathe had at least some infulence in Tony Stark's life, Howard did this, unfortunately Chedele didn't quite convince me! please can we consider putting politics and pettyness aside when casting and put the people who deserve to be I'n these roles actually in these roles.
Finally, Don Cheadle, is an excellent actor, but unsuited (pardon the pun) to this part. Terence Howard, another excelent actor, should have been in the sequel but just because his agent obtained a better deal than any of the others, he has been shafted and let's face it that's exCtly what happened.
I am going to have to agree with actor wanna be opposer. Michael jai white would have been perfect for the role. He is definitely fit like you would expect a military person to be and there is no doubt he has good acting skills. I can picture the voice fitting the war machine model. No offense to Don Cheadle or Terrence Howard either though but i would have to go with Michael Jai white. It would have been interesting seeing how that would have went. Well they say hindsight is 20/20.