Iron Man 3

APRIL 24, 2013

DIRECTOR Shane Black

CAST Downey, Paltrow, Cheadle, Guy Pearce (Aldrich Killian), Ben Kingsley (Mandarin), Rebecca Hall (Maya Hansen)

THE STORY Tony hasn’t been the same since the alien invasion in New York. He’s taken to obsessively tinkering with Iron Man armour because he’s extremely worried about the next attack, and his PTSD is also causing problems in his relationship with Pepper Potts. Enter the Mandarin, a terrorist responsible for attacks across America. Tony tries to stay out of the conflict, but he’s drawn in when Happy is injured in one of the Mandarin’s bombings. Determined to get revenge, Tony declares war on the Mandarin, who responds by blowing Tony’s life to smithereens, forcing the genius inventor to depend on his wits to win.

KEY MOMENT Tony discovers the Mandarin is a hoax. It turns out this America-hating crusader is, in reality, just a drunk British actor that Killian, the leader of a shady think tank, hired to be a scapegoat for the bombings. Killian’s new tech is actually responsible for the destruction, which intensifies the War on Terror and creates demand for his weaponry.

EFFECT ON THE MCU Having worked through his PTSD, Tony decides to have surgery to fix his heart; however, his fears about what’s out there drive him to create Ultron.