Jon Favreau: Tom Cruise is NOT Iron Man

As this news came across my virtual desk this morning I could practically feel the geek community heaving a collective sigh of relief.* Jon Favreau has finally spoke again about the state of his upcoming Marvel flick Iron Man. Fav started by pointing out the risk Marvel is taking with this flick because it is the first film coming from Marvel's personal new "war chest," which means it is self-financed. This is a double-edged sword for Marvel; on one hand, they get full control over their scripts and films and a much, much bigger cut of the profits, but on the other hand they also suck down the damages should their films fail. Marvel is NOT a huge company, so if more than one or two of these flicks tank they could quickly find themselves in trouble. The shame is they've already handed out two of their most valuable properties in X-Men and Spider-Man.

Fav also indicated that although the film's origin tale will be updated to fit into modern times, it will still stay faithful to the character and story with which fans are familiar. As an example of good faith, he offers us the gray iron man suit as a sacrifice on the altar of canon. Yes, Iron Man will debut in the classic gray costume. The alcoholism probably won't come into the story in the first film -- but groundwork will be laid.

And most exciting for fans of all sorts -- Fav said he is dedicated to casting a relative unknown, and not a "major star." By this, he is telling Marvel fans "I swear I'm not interested in Tom Cruise. Honest!" He said he hopes to make an official casting announcement later this year. Stay tuned to Cinematical for updates; yours truly is definitely staying on this story.

*Or maybe my sigh of relief was so large and heartfelt I just mistook it for the entire geek community.