Ever since Disney bought Marvel Studios, the chances of the studio tackling Tony Stark's alcoholism have seemed slim. He got drunk in 2010's
Iron Man 2, but that's about as close as we've come to seeing "Demon in a Bottle" on the big screen. When
Empire Magazine quizzed Kevin Feige on the chances of seeing this issue tackled in Shane Black's upcoming threequel, he said:
"He's not an alcoholic in the movies. Maybe one day that's a deeper story, but we're not going to do it unless we can make it a full-focused plot."
As for what we
should expect from the movie, he promised that while it may not match the sheer scale of
The Avengers, it WILL be the best of the trilogy.
"It's a fool's errand to continue to try to top spectacle. We don't equate bigger with better. It's Tony's most personal journey since he was trapped in a cave in the first half of the first movie, but it'll also have the largest spectacle of any of the Iron Man movies." Of course, this instalment is the last in Robert Downey Jr.'s current contract. Will we see him return?
"I hope we will see more of his Tony Stark in the future, but the focus right now is on Iron Man 3."
When he was once again asked whether we should expect to see Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner turn up in
Iron Man 3, he said no, but promised the following.
"We will see the Ruffalo Hulk in future. I don't know when or how, exactly, but he's an interesting character, and so many new avenues have opened up. But now in the movies, who's gonna pop up where? You're never quite sure." Most intriguing however were his comments on the mystery 2014 movie.
"Our next step," said Feige,
"will be to introduce a character outside the Avengers' world." Hmm...