Getting involved in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a decision that essentially means your dance card will be filled with movies for years to come. If nothing else it brings some job security. However, there have been some high-profile revisions within the MCU. But Don Cheadle, who took over the role of James Rhodes from Terrance Howard after the first Man of Steel movie, Denis was an “aunt viv” situation.
Recasting an existing role is pretty rare, but it happens in film as well as TV. One of the most famous recast decisions was the replacement of Janet Hubert as Will Smith’s Aunt Viv in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Hubert said he had no idea his role would be changed until it happened, but Cheadle recently told him on GQ that that’s not what happened in your situation. He explained…
Do I have it ‘Aunt Viv-ed’? I didn’t take Terence out of a role. He wasn’t, they had decided it wasn’t going to happen. And it was an open game. And I was at my son’s laser tag birthday party and they called me and said, “Here’s what’s going on.” We make you the offer. If he doesn’t say yes, we move on to the next person. It will happen very quickly.
Instead of replacing an actor who had no idea he was being replaced. Don Cheadle explains that the decision to separate Terrance Howard and Marvel Studios had already been made, and it was only then that he received a call offering him the role. Cheadle says he was given an hour to decide if he wanted the job, which was a six-picture deal, though no one could tell him what the plans were for the character in those six movies, because no one knew yet.
It does not appear that Cheadle’s taking on an existing role was part of his decision-making process. For him, it was just a question of whether he wanted to commit to six films over the next few years. He finally decided to do just that and has definitely made him the role of James Rhodes ever since.
Don Cheadle’s six-picture deal ended with Avengers ending, but it’s far from finished with the character. It will appear on Disney+ at Marvel covert invasion series and Cheadle’s planned Disney+ series armor warsit has undergone some changes and will now be a feature film.
Admittedly, the decision to take on the Marvel mantle and become War Machine has kept DOn Cheadle very busy, and the fact that he continues to do even more work for Marvel seems to show that he enjoys it. For him, Terrance Howard and Marvel going their separate ways paid off for him.
Source: Cinemablend
