Audiences catching “Iron Man 2” this weekend will meet Howard Stark, the much-discussed father of billionaire superhero Tony. What they don’t know is that they’re getting a first glimpse of what may end up being a very big part of the Marvel continuity puzzle, according to director Jon Favreau, as it seems the elder Stark will also make an appearance in “Captain America: The First Avenger.”
“Yeah, because he was around then,” Favreau clarified when asked about the character, played by John Slattery in “Iron Man 2.” “[‘Captain America’] is World War II. It wouldn’t be that same actor, probably, because he would be much younger.” In “Iron Man 2,” we only see the late Stark patriarch in showreel footage for the gaudy Stark Expo, but Favreau claims the character was an integral part of the WWII efforts in the Marvel universe.
This ties into previous rumors that suggest the scientific advances made by Stark in an early era might have been the foundation for the Super Soldier Serum wannabe soldier Steve Rogers injects to become the eventual field commander for the Avengers. Is it possible that director Joe Johnston might clear up the underexplained kerfuffle between Daddy Stark and Anton Vanko that spills into the antagonism between Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke) and Iron Man in “Iron Man 2”? Also, consider us in favor of just bringing back John Slattery, who seems like he could play any age from 30-60, even though he very well may have filmed his “Iron Man 2” scenes drunk on the “Mad Men” set.