Last week, we caught up with The Infernal Machine star Guy Pearce over email to discuss his role in that new action thriller from Paramount Movies. You'll have to check back here tomorrow for our full conversation with the actor, but while we had this opportunity, we asked him about possibly returning to the MCU.
As we're sure you'll remember, Pearce played the villainous A.I.M. Leader Aldrich Killian in Iron Man 3. Revealed as the one pulling the fake Mandarin's strings, he'd later declare himself the Mandarin...only to get swiftly blown up.
The nature of "Extremis" means it's possible the villain could return, and with projects like Ironheart and Armor Wars on the horizon, now feels like a good time for A.I.M. to rise from the ashes. With that in mind, we asked if there's anything left with the character he'd like to explore in those projects given how much the MCU has expanded and evolved since 2013.
"Absolutely! I’m not sure what though," Pearce admitted. "I don’t know enough about the MCU but I feel there are endless possibilities, especially for a character like Aldrich Killian."
"Firstly, I’d have to come back from the dead, so all bets are off really with that as a starting place..."
This isn't the first time Pearce has expressed enthusiasm to return to the MCU as Killian, so we're hoping Marvel Studios is paying attention. There are already rumblings that Obidiah Stane's son will factor into Ironheart, and revisiting A.I.M. and Killian in that and/or Armor Wars makes sense on a number of levels.
If nothing else, we're sure the villain's legacy will play into these Iron Man-adjacent stories. For now, though, we can't recommend watching his work in The Infernal Machine highly enough (watch the trailer and an exclusive clip from the movie below).
Paramount Movies' The Infernal Machine is now playing in select theaters and available on Digital platforms.