We've heard mixed reports on what role Sam Rockwell could be up for in Iron Man 2. Some reports had him playing Whiplash while others had him pegged for Justin Hammer. To me, Justin Hammer has always seemed like an old dude to me. But it turns out, that's the role Rockwell will be playing. Rockwell recently spoke with MTV on the matter:
According to Rockwell, “Iron Man” director Jon Favreau originally considered casting him for the role of Tony Stark in the first film, but he’s now on board to appear as Justin Hammer, a staunch corporate rival for Stark, in “Iron Man 2.”
“We had a phone conversation about it, and then I didn’t hear anything and that was it,” Rockwell told MTV of early conversations regarding the part that eventually went to Robert Downey Jr. One blockbuster film later, the phone conversation was accompanied by an offer to play Hammer, and Rockwell accepted.
Weird to think that Robert Downey Jr almost wasn't Tony Stark. Justin Hammer is a middle aged business man that wants to take Stark's place in the weapons selling business after he pulled out. To me, he's not that exciting of a character. I'm not sure if I feel he's really necessary but I'm not going to argue with Favreau's judgement. It seems like it's going to be a busy movie. We have Mickey Rourke as possibly Crimson Dynamo. Emily Blunt may be playing the Black Widow. Mandarin is supposed to be in it and possible Hawkeye too. No wonder Tony develops a drinking problem.
