Categories
Business

I liked Terrence Howard in the role, but I think that Don Cheadle is better.

Terrence Howard Blames Robert Downey Jr. For Getting Him Fired From ‘Iron Man 2’

Terrence Howard certainly hasn’t been quiet about his removal from the Marvel-verse and “Iron Man” series after the first hit film. Earlier this year he took a swipe at the comic studio for their dealmaking, in which actors sign for multiple pictures, but Marvel has the ultimate say on whether or not they’ll use them again. “…I didn’t know it wasn’t a mutually binding contract; it was only beneficial for them and they could bring me back or not. They can honor it or not,” he said about why he was replaced by Don Cheadle in “Iron Man 2,” where he was supposed to earn $8 million, an increase from the $4.5 million he took home for the first movie. But now he also points a finger at Robert Downey Jr., who he says suggested him for the superhero job in the first place.

“It turns out that the person that I helped become Iron Man, when it was time to re-up for the second one, took the money that was supposed to go to me and pushed me out,” Howard said on Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live.”

“We did a three-picture deal. That means you did the deal ahead of time—a certain amount for the first one, a certain amount for the second, a certain amount for the third. They came to me with the second and said ‘look, we will pay you one-eighth of what we contractually had for you, because we think the second one will be successful with or without you.’ And I called my friend, that I helped get the first job, and he didn’t call me back for three months,” Howard added. Ouch.

In case you’re wondering, Howard taking credit for RDJ getting the “Iron Man” gig is nothing new. In 2010, not long after “Iron Man 2” opened, a much more seemingly forgiving Howard had this to say to E!: “”For me to have recommended him, it means all the more so that I helped someone get to where they are supposed to go. Marvel and I are now talking about doing some other things. And Don Cheadle wanted to play that part before I wanted to play it, so everything is very well.”

Well, clearly those Marvel plans aren’t happening—Howard has since claimed they tried to kill his career—and the actor is leaving the ultimate judgement on RDJ to the man above. “Oh, I love him. God’s going to bless him,” he said.