Terrence Howard was among the first performers to be cast in the live-action rendition of Marvel’s Iron Man back in 2008, when the MCU was not yet a household name. The superhero action was a smashing success, not only launching the Marvel Cinematic Universe but also setting the tone and formula for many future MCU ventures.
Iron Man established Robert Downey Jr. as the global celebrity that he is today. Unfortunately, Terrence Howard, the highest-paid actor in Iron Man, did not reprise his part as Tony Stark’s friend James Rhodes in the sequel, forcing producers to replace him with Don Cheadle. The purported wage decrease was the basis for Howard’s dismissal.
Terrence Howard departed Iron Man 2 owing to a wage disagreement.
Many people were shocked by Terrence’s disappearance, particularly since his ill-fated dialogue, “Next time, baby,” mistakenly foreshadowed his War Machine suit-up. His removal from Iron Man 2 was due to a pay disagreement with the producers. Following the popularity of Iron Man, Howard was allegedly requested to work for less than the previously agreed-upon contractual sum. Aside from the wage conflict, several outlets claimed that Terrence’s replacement as War Machine was due to work. According to insiders, Howard was a tough performer to work with and had disagreements with the film’s director, Jon Favreau. However, none of the parties ever verified such claims, and the salary reduction issue lingered throughout.
According to sources, the conflict occurred when producers approached Howard to propose a wage reduction since Favreau and screenwriter Justin Theroux were considering decreasing the actor’s involvement. Terrence Howard reportedly left the project because of a compensation reduction ranging from 50% to 80%. Surprisingly, the dispute sparked a quarrel between Howard and Rober Downey Jr., with the former accusing the latter of not sticking up for him.
When questioned about the controversy during his appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, Terrence said:
“It turns out that the guy I assisted in becoming Iron Man pocketed the money that was meant to go to me and pushed me out when it came time to re-apply for the second one.”
When Andy Cohen pressed him further, asking whether the problem was due to his desire for the same remuneration as Downey, Terrence Howard elaborated:
“We made a three-picture agreement. That indicates you planned ahead of time. It was going to be a certain sum for the first, a certain sum for the second, and a certain sum for the third. They approached me about the second one and said, ‘We will pay you one-eighth of what we contractually had for you since we believe the second one would be successful with or without you.’ And when I phoned my buddy who helped me acquire the first job, he didn’t call me back for three months.”
When asked about Terrence Howard’s friendship with RDJ, the Prisoners actor responded sarcastically:
“Oh, how I adore him. God will reward him.”
Terrence Howard even stated in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine that he had phoned Downey 17 times without success. However, in 2008, Robert Downy Jr. denied any involvement in the removal of Howard from the film and declined to speak more.
Downey’s Tony Stark/Iron Man persona became the franchise’s principal character until his in-universe death at the conclusion of the Infinity Saga in Avengers: Endgame. Don Cheadle, on the other hand, has been playing War Machine since 2010 and is likely to reprise the role in forthcoming projects such as Secret Invasion and Armor Wars.
