The son of George Hamilton, stepson of Rod Stewart, former competitor on "Dancing With The Stars" and a correspondent on "Extra"….listen, we know Marvel is thrifty, but this is pretty ridiclous…
But believe it or not, Ashley Hamilton — one of People's most beautiful people in the world sometime in the '90s (hilariously, even IMDB can't be bothered to find out when) has joined "Iron Man 3" as the villain Firepower. To Wikipedia! Essentially, Firepower is another guy-in-a-metal-suit-with-weapons, the brainchild of Edwin Cord, rival businessman to the currently treehugging Tony Stark. Or depending on which storyline you're using, he's government agent who tangles with War Machine instead of Iron Man. Either way, Ashley Hamilton. Man, after losing Jessica Chastain, that pendulum just swung way back the other way….
Anyway, the Drew Pearce-penned, Shane Black-directed movie starts shooting this month and we presume "Extra" will have all the juicy gossip. Hell, Hamilton will be right there to report on it while he's shooting. And he'll have plenty of stars to choose from with Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Rebecca Hall, Guy Pearce, Ben Kingsley and James Badge Dale set to star with THR reporting that Jon Favreau is back to reprise his part as Happy Hogan. The final icing on the cake? According to Latino Review, the film has been given a budget increase to a staggering $200 million. Damn.
Meanwhile, Mads Mikkelsen has bagged a mystery bad guy role in "Thor 2," though he'll still be playing second fiddle to Tom Hiddleston who will be coming back as Loki. The celebrated Danish actor recently wowed Cannes Film Festival crowds with his turn in the Thomas Vinterberg's divisive "The Hunt," and is probably best known stateside for giving James Bond a hard time in "Casino Royale." He's a great actor and should prove to be a nice presence in the film.
"Iron Man 3" arrives on May 3, 2013 followed by "Thor 2" on November 15, 2013. Alan Taylor directs the latter. [Variety/Variety]