10 Questions for Jon Favreau

The actor-director's Iron Man 2 opens the summer blockbuster season. Jon Favreau will now take your questions

By Jon Favreau Monday, May 17, 2010
    • Charles William Bush for TIME

    Do you think comic-book films have reached their end point yet?

    Cory Lewandowski, ALFRED, N.Y.

    Anything reaches saturation. It happens with every genre. It happened with the western many, many years ago. But there's always room for good storytelling. And if you put a project together properly--regardless of whether it's a superhero movie--it's going to find its audience.

    Were you a comic-book geek as a kid?

    Brian Kim, LA PALMA, CALIF.

    I was into other geeky things, but it's all part of the same culture. I read science-fiction books. I did my stint with Dungeons & Dragons. Then I started to be more of a movie geek. I would go to revival houses and watch films.

    Because of Avatar, 3-D is all the rage. Would you consider using the technology in future films?

    Tim Pearce, ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA

    Yes. I love 3-D. I think that when it's applied properly, it's a tremendous resource. As we cruise past the gimmick phase and start to embrace it as something that's just like adding color or better sound, it's going to make the experience more immersive.

    Of all the heroes in the Marvel universe, why Iron Man?

    Frank Murtaugh, MEMPHIS, TENN.

    Iron Man was one of the titles that Marvel, the studio, had the rights to. All the big boys, like Spider-Man and the X-Men, had already been sold off. I liked him because he was a hero that was a peer I could relate to. It wasn't about a kid in high school.

    Robert Downey Jr. has an eccentric way about him in many of his roles. Does that bleed over into real life?

    Michael Lindsay, CHESAPEAKE, VA.

    Yeah, he's an eccentric guy. That's a good word for him. He's more of a creative thinker than an organized thinker. He's the stirrer in the cocktail glass. He likes to do nontraditional things, especially in a traditional genre like this.

    Do you think it's difficult for great actors to work in seemingly non-serious movies like Iron Man?

    Alexander Albers, ROTTERDAM

    As long as they're going to end up with something they're proud of, actors are ready to take a chance. They work on a few films a year, so it's nice to mix it up and be in something that's going to be a crowd pleaser.

    Lately, in American movies and TV shows, there have been a lot of Russian villains. Why are you picking on us?

    Elena Musinova, MOSCOW

    In the old days, all the bad guys were Russian or Soviet because it was the Cold War. In the case of our bad guy, Ivan Vanko, we didn't make him a Soviet superwarrior. He's an individual. He doesn't represent the Russian system. It was just an interesting look and affectation to give Mickey Rourke.

    How does one get scripts to the right people in Hollywood?

    Courtney Norman, VENICE, CALIF.

    To be honest, people who are looking for scripts are scared to look at an unsolicited piece of material. With every movie that gets made, there's usually about a half-dozen people suing that production company, saying, "You stole my idea."

    How does your experience as a director influence your acting and vice versa?

    Emily Hansen, SANDS POINT, N.Y.

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