The 'will he, won't he' saga of "The Wrestler" star Mickey Rourke and his proposed involvement as a villain in Marvel's "Iron Man 2" appears to finally be drawing to a close, albeit a rather acrimonious close.
"Right now, we're not doing Iron Man 2," Rourke told New York Magazine - simply and categorically. But why drop out of the running when things were once looking so rosy? Well, rumour has it that Marvel offered the Oscar-nominated star only $250,000 for a role facing off against Robert Downey Jr's. Iron Man. Quite rightly, the offer was deemed quite paltry for a name such as Rourke, an undeniably talented, if somewhat unpredictable, actor.
This wouldn't be the first time that Marvel's frugal plan has landed them in hot water and sans actors. Terence Howard was reportedly pushed from "Iron Man 2" due to the size of his wage, with many outlets suggesting that his pay packet was greater than anyone else's on set - including the main event, RDJ. Either way, Howard was forced out of the role of Rhodey and was replaced by Don Cheadle.
Rourke won't be out of work for long though as he has recently signed on to Sly Stallone's all-star action fest "The Expendables", which is due to start shooting very soon.