* ActorInspiredElement:
** The dance Creator/SamRockwell does before presenting the drones at the Expo is improvised and something he does to help him get into character.
** Creator/MickeyRourke suggested half of Vanko's dialogue be in Russian. He also suggested the addition of tattoos, gold teeth and a fondness for a pet cockatoo, paying for the teeth and bird with his own money.
* ActorSharedBackground: The U.S. Marshal in the beginning who serves Tony his subpoena says she's from Bedford, New York, just like her actress Creator/KateMara.
* AscendedFanon: Ever since the Marvel-Sony deal was announced back in 2015, people had speculated that the masked little boy at the Stark Expo was actually a young Peter Parker. Shortly before the release of ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'', Creator/TomHolland, Creator/KevinFeige, and Jon Watts all confirmed that this was an actual {{revision}}.
* AwesomeDearBoy: Creator/SamRockwell signed on without having read the script, as he enjoyed working with Creator/JonFavreau on ''Film/{{Made}}''.
* BannedInChina: Curiously, [[http://shanghaiist.com/2010/05/09/chinas_bizarre_censorship_of_iron_m_1.php every instance of the word "Russian" was made inaudible]] in the China version. No explanation was given for why, although theories abound in the comments ranging from China thinking viewers would be distressed by a Russian villain, trying to lend courtesy to the country due to being their longtime (if intermittent) ally, or instead trying to distance themselves from Russia [[HeWhoMustNotBeNamed by obscuring all mention of it]].
* CastTheRunnerUp:
** Creator/SamRockwell was previously considered to play Tony Stark.
** Creator/OliviaMunn originally appeared as an unnamed character who was subsequently cut from the film. Creator/JonFavreau then gave her the role of Chess Roberts, a reporter covering the Stark expo.
* CowboyBebopAtHisComputer: A ridiculous number of reviews refer to Creator/ScarlettJohansson's character as "Natalie Rushman," the false identity Natasha Romanoff uses when she first appears in the film. Understandable if the reviewer is attempting to avoid spoiling the character's true identity (though neither the movie's advertising campaign nor the movie itself are particularly subtle about it) but clueless in reviews that go on to identify her as the Black Widow. Moviefone calling her "Natasha Rushman" didn't help.
* CreatorBacklash:
** Creator/MickeyRourke [[http://screenrant.com/mickey-rourke-iron-man-2-marvel-movies-benm-139224/ wanted to play Vanko as a complete human being]], but says Marvel didn't want an AntiVillain and thus cut his sympathetic scenes, which amounted apparently to ''a lot'' of his scenes overall. Rourke wasn't happy with so much of his work being discarded, and has proceeded to spew [[TakeThat vitriol]] at Marvel, the director, and even the other actors in every interview he gave since.
** Creator/JonFavreau hated what the Marvel higher-ups forced him into pushing out so much he made [[Film/Chef2014 a whole film]] as an analogy of his creative struggle. Though he returned to produce ''Film/IronMan3'', and continued playing Happy in future films, he turned down directing it due to his experiences on this film.
** While she still has fond memories of the film, Creator/ScarlettJohansson admitted that she didn't care for her performance in this film, as she felt that Black Widow's sexualization made her feel more like a possession than a full fledged human being. Her behind-the-scenes interviews for later installments in the MCU (culminating in the one for ''Film/BlackWidow2021'') shows her more increasingly invested in how the character grew with her input.
* CreatorCouple: Creator/SamRockwell and Leslie Bibb are a couple in RealLife. Her presence in this film is a bit of an ironic coincidence. First Bibb was cast in the [[SmallRoleBigImpact small but pivotal role]] of Christine Everhart in ''Film/IronMan1'', then she began dating Rockwell, then Rockwell was cast as Justin Hammer for this film, and when the producers found out he was dating the actress who played Christine in the first film, they decided to have Christine be Hammer's uninterested date.
* DeletedScene: [[DeletedScene/MarvelCinematicUniverse See here]].
* DisownedAdaptation: In an interview, Bob Layton [[http://www.boblayton.com/interview-with-bob-by-dolmen-magazine/ made it clear he despises what the film did to Justin Hammer]], viewing the film version's AdaptationalComicRelief as a black mark on the character.
* DyeingForYourArt:
** Creator/RobertDowneyJr gained twenty pounds of muscle to reprise his role of Tony Stark.
** Creator/ScarlettJohansson dyed her hair red ''before'' auditioning for the part of Black Widow because she wanted the part so badly. [[{{Pun}} Now she really is]] ''Scarlett'' Johansson.
* ExecutiveMeddling:
** Creator/JonFavreau had a lot of friction with the Marvel higher-ups due to their constant intervention, to the point that they were having him rewrite the script ''as'' the film was still shooting. In particular, elements such as the increased prominence of the [[SpotlightStealingSquad S.H.I.E.L.D subplot]] were the result of a need to establish the greater Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse in preparation for ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', at the expense of the coherence of the main ''Iron Man 2'' plot. These disputes got so bad that Favreau turned down directing ''Film/IronMan3''.
** WordOfGod says the original script delved deeper into Tony's alcoholism, a la the infamous "Demon in a Bottle" arc, but was left out due to studio interference.
** [[TheOtherDarrin Terrence Howard was replaced by Don Cheadle]] due to a number of disagreements between the studio and Howard's agents.
** Scenes that fleshed out Ivan Vanko and portrayed him as a more sympathetic figure were cut from the final film, resulting in him appearing to be a more generic villain. This may be a reason why Rourke has stated he is not fond of his experience working on the film.
* FakeNationality:
** Most of the French spoken in the film is grammatically accurate but noticeably spoken by non-Francophone actors playing characters from either Monaco or the southeast of France (with the exception of [[spoiler:the corrupt prison guard who delivers Vanko to Hammer and says "I'm not leaving him with you, he's batshit"]]).
** [[FakeRussian The Russian]] Black Widow and Whiplash are portrayed by American actors Creator/ScarlettJohansson and Creator/MickeyRourke respectively. The former in particular [[NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent didn't even try to put on a Russian accent]].
* FirstAppearance: Of Black Widow.
* InMemoriam: Adam Goldstein, aka DJ AM, who played himself as the DJ at Tony's birthday party, passed away from a drug overdose on August 28, 2009, a little more than eight months before the film's release.
* IronyAsSheIsCast: Not being tech literate, Creator/MickeyRourke found the most challenging part about playing Whiplash was pretending to know his way around a computer.
* MissingTrailerScene: Several. [[spoiler:Most notably, Tony saying "you complete me" as Pepper kisses his helmet then throws it out an airborne plane for him to catch—it was decided during editing that it disrupted the movie's flow—and Tony letting "Natalie" try out his repulsor.]] (All can be seen on the DVD).
* TheOriginalDarrin: In the Latin American Spanish dub, Creator/IdziDutkiewicz reprises his role as Tony Stark after being replaced by Andrés García for his appearance in ''The Incredible Hulk''.
* OrphanedReference: The ViralMarketing included a fake commercial for the Stark-Fujikawa subsidiary, which made little sense in the overall context of the film. This is because the character Rumiko Fujikawa (a Japanese businesswoman and one of Tony's love interests from the comics) was supposed to appear in the film, but was cut when the script was rewritten.
* TheOtherDarrin:
** James Rhodes was played by Creator/TerrenceHoward in ''Iron Man''. From this movie onwards, he's played by Creator/DonCheadle. His first scene is framed in such a way that his face isn't visible until after Tony greets him, so that the audience is clear on who he is. As an added bonus, Cheadle and Creator/RobertDowneyJr are the same height, meaning that the production team wouldn't have to deal with nitpicking over how Rhodey would have fit into the Iron Man suit if he was still played by Howard (who's significantly taller than Downey).
--->'''Tony:''' I didn't expect to see you here.\\
'''Rhodes:''' [[LampshadeHanging It's me, I'm here, deal with it, let's move on. Drop it.]]
*** Applies for the Latin dub as well, as from this film on, Creator/OscarFlores replaces Creator/JavierRivero, who originally dubbed Rhodes in the first film.
** In the first ''Iron Man'', Howard Stark (as seen in a photo) is played by Gerard Sanders. From this film onwards, the role of (the older) Howard Stark goes to Creator/JohnSlattery (as opposed to Creator/DominicCooper, who plays a younger Howard in TheForties).
** In the French dub of the first film, Creator/PaulBorne voiced Nick Fury. Creator/SamuelLJackson's usual dub voice since ''Film/PulpFiction'', Creator/ThierryDesroses, took over with this film.
* RealLifeRelative: Creator/JonFavreau's son Max makes a cameo as the kid, later retconned as Peter Parker, at the Stark Expo who stands up to a Hammer drone.
* ThrowItIn: "Gimme a phat beat to beat my buddy's ass to." Creator/RobertDowneyJr. is clearly cracking up after saying that, but it's perfectly in character as Tony is extremely drunk.
* WagTheDirector: Creator/MickeyRourke improvised a lot of Vanko's characteristics, such as [[OralFixation his toothpick habit]], his fondness for cockatoos, and his tattoos. He paid for the cockatoo with his own money, learned to speak Russian, and visited the infamous [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butyrka_prison Butyrka prison]] to interview the prisoners there, who he described as very polite.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
** Creator/EmilyBlunt was the first choice for the role of [[Comicbook/BlackWidow Natasha Romanoff]] before Creator/ScarlettJohansson was cast, but turned down the offer due to prior contractual obligations with ''[[Film/{{Gullivers Travels|2010}} Gulliver's Travels]]''.
*** Creator/JessicaBiel, Creator/GemmaArterton, Creator/JessicaAlba, Creator/NataliePortman, Creator/BrieLarson and Creator/AngelinaJolie were considered for the part of Black Widow as well before the casting of Johansson. Biel had previously portrayed Abigail Whistler in ''Film/BladeTrinity'', while Alba previously portrayed [[Comicbook/InvisibleWoman Susan Storm]] in ''{{Film/Fantastic Four|2005}}''. Portman, Larson and Jolie would eventually go on to play [[ComicBook/Thor2014 Jane Foster]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsCarolDanvers Carol Danvers]] and Thena in ''Film/{{Thor}}'', ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}'' and ''Film/{{Eternals}}'' respectively.
** Creator/AlPacino was considered for the role of Justin Hammer before the casting of Creator/SamRockwell.
** Creator/TimRobbins was considered for the part of Howard Stark before Creator/JohnSlattery was cast. Robbins had previously portrayed Phil Blumburtt in ''Film/HowardTheDuck''.
** Creator/EdwardNorton was rumored to reprise his role as [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk Bruce Banner]], in a cameo for this film, as a foreshadowing of ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}''.
** Rumiko Fujikawa was initially going to appear, with Marvel wanting Creator/ZhangZiyi for the role. Her part was cut due to the film [[FourLinesAllWaiting already having too much going on]], but ViralMarketing showcasing her Stark-Fujikawa subsidiary was still used to promote the movie.
** There were plans for Creator/PaulBettany to appear in a flashback scene that would have explained the origin of JARVIS. Presumably, he would have played the original Edwin Jarvis, a role that eventually went to Creator/JamesDArcy in ''Series/AgentCarter''.
** [[https://www.bleedingcool.com/2016/05/31/civil-war-did-not-cause-the-civil-war-at-marvel-the-rot-set-in-with-iron-man-2/ According to rumors]], the film was originally meant to be DarkerAndEdgier, and would've dealt with Tony's alcoholism and self-destructive behavior in a much more serious manner. However, Marvel's Creative Committee got upset about certain scenes (including one where a drunken Tony would've verbally abused Pepper), leading to this subplot being nixed.
** An alternate ending was shot where Vanko is revealed to have survived his apparent self-destruction, only to be killed by War Machine. The studio went with the more ambiguous NeverFoundTheBody exit because they wanted to make it possible for Vanko to return in future MCU movies. However, due to the great deal of CreatorBacklash from Rourke, it's really unlikely we'll be seeing Vanko again anytime soon.
** Ivan Vanko originally had a tattoo of Loki on his neck. The film's producers feared it would cause confused fans to believe that Vanko would have a connection to this other villain from the same Marvel Cinematic Universe, so the tattoo was removed in post-production using CGI.
** The earliest concepts for the movie served as an ImmediateSequel, opening with Tony and Pepper on the car ride home after the press conference at the end of first film.
** Another early idea was to show Tony building the Hall of Armor, which would have been located in a SHIELD facility.
* WordOfGod: According to Creator/JonFavreau, the Asian man who hands Vanko false papers in order to get to Monaco, is a member of the Ten Rings.
* WordOfSaintPaul: Shortly before the release of ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'', both Creator/TomHolland and Jon Watts claimed Creator/KevinFeige had told him the little kid who tries to assist Tony in the climax is Peter Parker. However, when asked, Feige was more ambiguous with his answer. Apparently this is because officially confirming that kid to be Spider-Man would require Disney/Marvel to pay additional money to Sony for an appearance of a character in a non-Sony project.
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