IRON MAN 3 Director Shane Black Reflects On The Movie's Christmas Setting...And Admits It Wasn't His Idea!

Is Iron Man 3 a Christmas movie? That's a question often asked by fans, but director Shane Black has now elaborated on the thinking behind that setting and why it wasn't as fun as in his previous movies.

After Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight, and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, it had become clear that filmmaker Shane Black enjoyed setting his movies around the festive period.

The expectation was that a "Shane Black movie" would be a "Christmas movie," hence why we all expected Iron Man 3 to take place during Christmas when he was announced as director. Talking to Empire Online, the filmmaker reveals that he didn't initially intend for the threequel to be a holiday-set adventure for the Armoured Avenger.

In fact, he only relented after co-writer Drew Pearce pushed for Iron Man 3 to take place at Christmas!

"I didn’t want Christmas to feel like a gimmick, or something that was predictable, or ostentatious on my part," Black says. "It started out as fun, and as soon as people noticed it, it stopped being fun. But I acquiesced largely because of the Christmas Carol aspect of it. Tony loses his support, loses his base, he’s adrift in Mid-America."

"And he’s not going to be visited by ghosts, but he’s certainly going to be in the middle of a reckoning, or a reconciliation, where he has to take stock, figure out what’s troubling him, and how he’s going to continue. It worked out well for the ending."

"The coda is basically him at Christmas, giving a gift to his fiancee, and giving a gift to a little kid who helped him. And there’s a Christmas miracle when Jon Favreau’s character comes out of a coma," the director continues. "There’s something about it, where you can get dark and dark and dark, as harsh as you want, and then summon up a little Christmas, and it gives you that pleasant out that you’re looking for."

While Iron Man 3 being a Christmas movie didn't really change much (it could have ditched the decorations and still been just as much fun), it's interesting to hear these parallels from Black.

We'd argue that Marvel Studios' first full-blown Christmastime story was last year's Hawkeye on Disney+, though they really embraced the holidays with The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special last month. As for Iron Man 3, it remains somewhat divisive, but is widely considered one of the Infinity Saga's best movies by many. 

Iron Man 3 is now streaming on Disney+!

IRON MAN 3 Star Guy Pearce Talks Possible Aldrich Killian Return In IRONHEART Or ARMOR WARS (Exclusive)
Related:

IRON MAN 3 Star Guy Pearce Talks Possible Aldrich Killian Return In IRONHEART Or ARMOR WARS (Exclusive)

ZONE 414 Star Guy Pearce Reveals If He Was Asked To Return For SHANG-CHI And Possible MCU Future (Exclusive)
Recommended For You:

ZONE 414 Star Guy Pearce Reveals If He Was Asked To Return For SHANG-CHI And Possible MCU Future (Exclusive)

DISCLAIMER: This post was submitted by a user who has agreed to our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. As a user-generated content platform, Comic Book Movie and Best Little Sites LLC is protected under the DMCA... [MORE]
IRON MAN 3 Director Shane Black Reflects On The Movie's Christmas Setting...And Admits It Wasn't His Idea!
Is Iron Man 3 a Christmas movie? That's a question often asked by fans, but director Shane Black has now elaborated on the thinking behind that setting and why it wasn't as fun as in his previous movies.
IRON MAN 3 Star Guy Pearce Talks Possible Aldrich Killian Return In IRONHEART Or ARMOR WARS (Exclusive)
With a lot of Iron Man-related projects in the works from Marvel Studios, could Aldrich Killian rise from the dead to plague Ironheart and War Machine? Here's what Guy Pearce told us about the possibility!
WONDER MAN Disney+ Series Will See The Return Of Sir Ben Kingsley As Trevor Slattery
After stealing the show in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Sir Ben Kingsley is set to reprise the role of Trevor Slattery for the upcoming Wonder Man Disney+ series...
ZONE 414 Star Guy Pearce Reveals If He Was Asked To Return For SHANG-CHI And Possible MCU Future (Exclusive)
In Iron Man 3, Aldrich Killian declared himself The Mandarin before meeting an explosive end. Here, Guy Pearce talks to us about whether he was contacted about Shang-Chi and how he could return to the MCU!
9 Times The Marvel Cinematic Universe Elevated Its Source Material
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has a knack for elevating the source material it's adapting. Here, we focus on nine examples of the MCU improving upon the stories the movies are based on...

The Best Little Sites Network (BLS)

Action Movie and TV News - AnimeMojo.com
Anime News, Trailers & More - AnimeMojo.com
Superhero News, Videos, Rumors & More - ComicBookMovie.com
Horror News - FearHQ.com
Video Game News, Reviews, Trailers & More - GameFragger.com
Sci-Fi and Fantasy News, Videos, Rumors & More - SFFGazette.com
Cartoon and Animated Film News, Videos, Rumors & More - Toonado.com
Professional Wrestling News, Videos, Rumors & More - TheRingReport.com