Iron Man

Top 10 Fun Facts

1. Stan Lee was fascinated by Howard Hughes, calling him "one of the most colorful men of our time: an inventor, an adventurer, a multimillionaire, a ladies man and finally a nutcase." Lee used Hughes as inspiration when creating the character of Tony Stark... I can see the resemblance.
2. Robert Downey Jr. got in iron-clad shape by learning martial arts and rigorously training five days a week. It definitely paid off... he beat out Nicolas Cage and Tom Cruise for the role of Tony Stark.
3. Director Jon Favreau decided against filming in New York City - he thought that too many superhero films take place there. He chose instead to just film Iron Man in California. I guess he didn't want to come up with a cool completely original nickname for NYC like "Gotham" or "Metropolis."
4. In real estate, it's all about location, location, location. In Iron Man, it's all about technology, technology, technology. Tony Stark's imposing mansion doesn't actually exist. It was digitally created and set on a bluff called Point Dume in Malibu, California.
5. Iron Man creator, Stan Lee (credited as "Himself) appears at a gala cavorting with three blond women, whom Tony Stark mistakes for Hugh Hefner. In the version moviegoers won't see, Stark realizes his mistake, but Lee graciously responds, "That's okay, I get this all the time." Lee later mentioned that it was his most fun cameo. Can you guess three reasons why?
6. When Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) is stealing Obediah's files off of Tony Stark's computer in his office, pay close attention to some of the names that show on the computer screen. A few are labeled "Lebowski," a playful homage to Jeff Bridges (who plays Obediah) and his famous slacker character from the movie of the same name.
7. Look on Tony's workbench during the scene where Pepper catches him being de-suited - Captain America's shield is sitting there. It's like superhero product placement.
8. Three Audi vehicles are used in Iron Man because of a deal between Marvel and Audi. The S5 and the Q7 SUV appear, and the car that Tony personally drives is an Audi R8 - heretofore known as "The Iron Man Car."
9. The filmmakers were so focused on getting the story and the action right that they didn't even finish the script before filming began. Robert Downey Jr. often asked for second takes when he wanted to try a different line, so Jon Favreau actually used multiple cameras to make sure he got the best improvised dialogue. Favreau said this gave the film a "natural" quality. Good thing Robert Downey Jr. is such a good improviser, or else that really could have backfired.
10. Do You Know Who's Richer? Tony Stark (aka Ironman) or Bruce Wayne (aka Batman)? According to Forbes.com Fictional 15, Tony Stark ranks #10 on the list and is worth $6.0 billion, while Wayne is at #8 at $7.0 billion. Looks like the richest is "all BAT and a bag of chips."

Cast

Crew