GeekMatic!: Shane Black describes Iron Man 3 as a "Tom Clancy" styled thriller

Since Jon Favreau's departure from the director's chair of the Iron Man film franchise, director Shane Black was chosen by Marvel to step in and take over the job for the next sequel Iron Man 3, with more expectations rising from fans as to how the Kiss Kiss Bang Bang director would deliver the next film starring the Armored Avenger. At the recent Omaha Film Festival, Black confirmed that not only will he be helming the film, but he'll also be penning the script as well, and given his extensive writing resume and contributions to Hollywood hits like the Lethal Weapon franchise, we may be expecting big things for Ol' Shellhead's next adventure in the big screen.

Via a post from Ain't It Cool News, Shane Black will begin work on the screenplay of Iron Man 3 by meeting with the star of the show and Tony Stark himself, Robert Downey Jr. Having previously worked and directing the actor in his first and only directorial feature to date, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, it's a sure bet Black and Downey have chemistry, but how it will turn out when it comes to all things Iron Man remains to be seen. The director also states that because of the disappointment the studio had with the direction of Iron Man 2, things are going to be a little different this time around for Iron Man 3. Black describes the film as "Iron Man fighting real world villains in a Tom Clancy-styled thriller". If that's the case, then the third film returns in some way to the humble origins of the first film, where Tony Stark was forced to build a suit of armor to flee captivity from real life terrorists.

In a way, it makes perfect sense to ground Iron Man and have him fight real life villains. Iron Man 2 strayed too much from the sincerity and realism I felt from the first film, especially since the sequel was built as a springboard to slowly introduce The Avengers into Hollywood (which resulted on Jon Favreau leaving in the first place over creative differences with the studio). Having too many heroes will just confuse the direction of the movie altogether, and it's a relief to hear that Shane Black says there will be no other heroes appearing in Iron Man 3 other than Tony Stark, his alter ego, and his supporting cast. There will be references still, but since Iron Man 3 comes out a year after The Avengers hits theaters, things will shift back into single hero stories, and that's truly a good thing to expect. It's too soon to tell how this all plays out, but here's hoping Black, Downey, and the rest of the Iron Man film crew have something good to offer for the third film! For more info on the story, visit the source posts over at Ain't It Cool News and Slash Film!