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Marvel Studios’Iron Man 3almost had a female villain in the form of Maya Hansen, but director Shane Black’s plan to introduce a woman as the movie’s antagonist was contested by the higher-ups. Apparently, toy merchandise wouldn’t sell if the villain was a girl.
There had been a lot of hullaballoos concerning the thirdIron Maninstallment. From Ben Kingsley’s controversial Mandarin character to Jon Favreau dropping the franchise, the project was indeed a circus of events.
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Shane Black Reveals Female Villain Plan ForIron Man 3
In his interview withUproxx, directorShane Blackrevealed he wanted a female villain forIron Man 3. He planned to castJessica Chastainfor the role of Maya Hansen, but she refused the offer. The part eventually went to Rebecca Hall. He told the outlet:
“We had a female character who was the villain in the draft. We had finished the script, and we were given a no-holds-barred memo saying that cannot stand, and we’ve changed our minds because, after consulting, we’ve decided that toy won’t sell as well if it’s a female.”
Marvel bossKevin Feigeloved the idea of having the Mandarin as a paid actor and not the real antagonist. Black did not blame Feige for the change of plan, but he pointed his finger at the “Marvel corporate.” He continued:
“We had to change the entire script because of toy making. Now, that’s not Feige. That’s Marvel corporate, but now you don’t have that problem anymore.”
Black also revealedGuy Pearce’s character, Aldrich Killian, was supposed to be a woman. But, of course, the studio would not like that concept. He further shared:
“In the earlier draft, the woman was essentially Killian – and they didn’t want a female Killian, they wanted a male Killian. I liked the idea, like Remington Steele, you think it’s the man, but at the end, the woman has been running the whole show. They just said, ‘No way.’”
The director remarked he did not know who made the decision to scrap the idea, but he only received a memo, and it was about toy sales.
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Rebecca Hall Says Marvel Reduced Her Role As Maya Hansen
Rebecca Hallwas disappointed when her part was reduced to what she originally signed up for. The actress confirmed this toPostmedia Networkat the Toronto International Film Festival (viaToronto Sun):
“That’s 100% true. I’ve been gagging to talk about it with someone, but I haven’t had the opportunity, weirdly.”
She fought to make her role as significant as possible, but in the end, she only got to ask for one more vital scene with Iron Man to give her character more substance. Hall stated:
“Halfway through shooting they were basically like, ‘What would you think if you just got shot out of nowhere?’ I was meant to be in the movie until the end… I grappled with them for a while, and then I said, ‘Well, you have to give me a decent death scene, and you have to give me one more scene with Iron Man,’ which Robert Downey Jr. supported me on.”
Maya Hansen was killed off just before the big finale scene started, a character who could have changed the trajectory of Marvel films when it comes to representing female characters. Hall was happy that the studio finally learned its lesson:
“Look, [Marvel] is paying for their mistakes right now, and I applaud them for casting Brie Larson in Captain Marvel. Hallelujah. It’s about time women started being the heroes of things. They can also be the anti-heroes of the things.”
In the end, the role of the supervillain went to Guy Pearce’s Aldrich Killian, a genius scientist who created the Extremis virus with the help of Maya Hansen.
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Ariane Cruz
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3533
Ariane Cruz is a Senior Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on TV shows with over 3,000 articles published. Her love for pop culture and the creative arts fuels her passion to deliver engaging and informative stories. Her daily consumption of films, shows, and books keeps her energized for the day, along with her mission to serve as the bridge between fans and their favorite franchises.
