Iron Man 3 Will Have Different Cut in China; Co-Production Nixed

Confirming months-old rumors, Iron Man 3 will reportedly have different edits in China and the United States. "While Marvel and DMG have decided not to apply for co-production status in China, the film includes significant Chinese elements," the studio wrote in a statement. "Renowned Chinese actor Wang Xueqi will appear in both the studio's Chinese version of the film and in its international and domestic US version. Both versions of the film include Iron Man 3 footage filmed in Beijing in December. The Chinese version of the film will also feature a special appearance of China's top actress, Fan Bingbing, and will offer specially prepared bonus footage made exclusively for the Chinese audience." Fan Bingbing, of course, will appear as Blink in Fox's upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past. ComicBook.com was the first to report that Iron Man 3 director Shane Black and refuted early reports that the film was to shoot in China during a press room at San Diego Comic Con International last year. "I assume that when the plates crew goes over to China to film the plates while I'm standing by my swimming pool, that it will go really well," joked Black in response to a question about shooting overseas.

"It's weird because we're not going to China," he told the reporters in attendance, before turning to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige to say, "Can I say that?" "This is why I love Shane," said star Robert Downey, Jr. "He says it, then turns to Kevin and asks him if he can say it." Shortly thereafter, the degree to which the film was a true co-production began to be questioned, especially in the Chinese media, leading to rumors that the film's co-production status was in jeopardy. At the time, Marvel denied the rumors. Some had also expressed concern that the film's choice of villain--The Mandarin, traditionally depicted in the comics as an evil Chinese mystic--would put the studio at odds with the heavily-censored Chinese film industry. The studio said there was little concern, since his stereotypical Chinese traits had been removed and Sir Ben Kingsley was playing the character as kind of pan-ethnic. The film has been the source of significant controversy here in the States, too, where musicians picketed the production site due to Marvel's practice of using overseas, non-union workers to score their films.  The Alliance for American Manufacturing also attacked the "offshoring" of the film. The film incentives used to keep the production in North Carolina were also questioned by right-wing organizations who are opposed to using tax money to bolster "preferred" corporate partners and claimed that across-the-board tax cuts would have been more effective.