Olivia Munn cast as Marvel Character after her original IRON MAN 2 role was Scrapped
Remember last June, when we reported that G4's Attack of The Show host Olivia Munn was cast in Iron Man 2? Remember how the role was kept under wraps? Well, it looks like it doesn't really matter because her part has ended up on the cutting room floor for the highly anticipated sequel.
But luckily for Munn, director Jon Favreau and the folks at Marvel liked her so much, that they decided to recast her as (a different role being kept under wraps), and to shoot additional scenes that would include the new character.
In an interview with Complex Magazine, Munn gave all the details she could reveal, and explained how Favreau broke the news to her:
You're in two gigantic movies this year. Let's talk about Iron Man 2 first because it's ****ing Iron Man 2.
Olivia Munn: Actually, they just gave me another role in the film. I had to reshoot all of my scenes.
Wait, didn't they start filming like last year or something?
Olivia Munn: Yeah, but as they started to edit they realized it was becoming darker than what they'd expected and what my scenes had allowed for. My parts were lighthearted and comedic.
Yikes.
Olivia Munn: Jon Favreau called and was like, "I've got good news and bad news: This is what's happening in editing but we all really like you." Marvel and Jon had to add another character from the Marvel universe to keep me included.
I need details! Tell us anything about the old or new role.
Olivia Munn: I can't talk specifics because it's Iron Man 2! But when they call, you say, "OK, I'm there. What do you need?" You don't say, "Who is this Marvel? Did you call my agent? Is FIJI Water on set?" Everyone knows who the stars are in this movie. I'm not one of them and I understand the editing process. Some things don't work out.
What if you'd stayed on the cutting room floor?
Olivia Munn: I would've started crying.
I take it she upgraded from the situation. I speculate she was playing something similar to Leslie Bibbs' reporter role in the first Iron Man. But even if this new character was added after principal photography, she could parlay the part into more appearances in other Marvel films.
If that ends up being the case, that would be a pretty amazing story. There have been countless actors who have auditioned for one character, and are ultimately cast as another. But I've never heard of filming one role, then reshooting for another role in the same movie. The only story I can think of that is as cool, is how Harrison Ford ended up being cast as Han Solo -- Lucas initially didn't like the idea of using Harrison Ford, as he had previously worked with him on American Graffiti, and instead asked Ford to assist in the auditions by reading lines with the other actors and explaining the concepts and history behind the scenes that they were reading. It was in helping auditioning other actors that Ford won the part.
So we don't know what Munn's role will be, but we do know that it will be a character from the Marvel Universe. She had long been rumored to be playing the Scarlett Witch. But considering that Marvel has a stable of 7,000+ characters, if only 1/3 of them were female (there is probably more), that leaves the doors open for over 2,300 characters she could be. Granted there is only a small fraction of those who have crossed paths with Iron Man, it hurts my head to even begin to guess. But I'll leave that open for you to do in the rant back section below.
What character from the Marvel Universe do you think Munn is playing?