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Iron Man 2cemented Robert Downey Jr. as the cornerstone of the MCU, with the franchise only moving onward and upwards after the film’s financial success. However, actor Mickey Rourke, who played the role of Ivan Vanko in the movie claimed that his character and screen time greatly suffered to ensure Downey Jr. remained the star.
During an interview, Rourke opened up about his brief stint in the MCU, while also voicing his frustrations with most of his scenes ending up on the chopping board. As a result, Rourke had some pretty nasty and stingy words for the makers ofIron Man 2,and here is what the actor had to say about his deleted scenes from the movie.
Mickey Rourke Claimed That 80% of His Scenes Were Cut FromIron Man 2
ActorMickey Rourkeplayed the role of Ivan Vanko / Whiplash, the primary antagonist ofIron Man2. However, Rourke’s character ended up being a one-dimensional bad guy with the actor claiming that most of his scenes were left out from the final cut.
During an interview with Andy Lee on theOff The BallYouTube channel, Rourke opened up about his role inIron Man 2. At the same time, Rourke voiced his frustrations with his scenes cut from the movie. He said:
I told whatever company it was to go fk themselves and kiss my a.
Rourke explained that he spent a lot of time on his character work for the movie, delivering what he felt was a great performance. However, most of his scenes were left on the cutting room floor despite good results during test screenings.
It wasn’t supposed to be my movie, you understand.
Rourke made the above statement, explaining why almost 80% of his character’s scenes were cut from the movie.
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The actor’s words strongly imply that his scenes were cut because his performance was overpowering that of the main star Robert Downey Jr. Hence, Rourke suggested that his scenes were cut so that he wouldn’t steal Downey Jr.’s thunder inIron Man 2.
Mickey Rourke Fought to Add Layers to HisIron Man 2Villain
During a separate interview, Rourke also talked about fighting with the studio to ensure that Whiplash wasn’t just a one-note villain and wanted to add different layers to the character. He said (viaScreenRant):
I wanted to bring some other layers and colors [to the charater], not just make this Russian a complete murderous revenging bad guy.
Rourke added that writer Justin Theroux and director Jon Favreau allowed him to explore different aspects of the character butmost of these scenes were cut.
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The actor also revealed that he spent nearly three months working on his Russian accent and worked extremely hard for the role.
I don’t want to have to care so much and work so hard, and then fight them for intelligent reasoning.
Rourke made the above statement explaining his creative differences with the studio. As a result, it is easy to understand whyThe Wrestleractor was unhappy since most of his performance ended up on the cutting room floor.
Iron Man 2is streaming on Disney+.
Pratik Handore
Content Writer
Articles Published :1774
With a keen interest in comic book movies and blockbuster franchises, Pratik usually covers news and updates on the DCU, MCU, Star Wars, and more.A die-hard fan of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, Pratik spends most of his time exploring different storytelling mediums that invoke a sense of wonder and adventure. Other filmmakers whose works have deeply influenced him include Alfred Hitchcock, James Gunn, and Guillermo del Toro.
