Comic book movie fans love nothing more than to speculate on casting (Johnny Depp as The Riddler? OMG! STFU! LULZ!), so we take news of Iron Man 2 cast additions with a titanium cannister of gamma-irradiated salt. That said, here are the rumored newbies, and the roles they are slated to be stepping into.

First up - The Mick. Fresh off The Wrestler, Mickey Rourke is currently the hottest man in Hollywood (in terms of career, we mean. No one's finding that roast beef face attractive these days), so his inclusion in IM2 casting rumors is no surprise. However, there are conflicting reports. Some say Mick will be stepping into the rival armor casing of the Crimson Dynamo...




...basically, he's Russia's answer to Iron Man ("Ivan Man?"). This could make sense in the film - maybe the terrorists from the first movie sell those makeshift "Iron Monger" plans to the highest bidder, allowing some Russian tech guru to fashion his own high-flying war machine. Plus, it keeps the threats tech-based and global, like the first movie. Still, can Mick do a Russian accent? We're skeptical.


The other rumor has Mick playing Blacklash (also sometimes known as Whiplash)...




...Now this is just silly. It's only the second movie - in order to dig deep enough down to have to include this Z-level villain they have to be at least nearing movies 4 or 5. Can you picture Mick wanting to play a dude with a glowing whip and a neon-green ponytail? Can you picture anyone wanting to? We flip off this rumor like Darren Aronofsky.

The second casting call allegedly went out to Sam Rockwell (Frost/Nixon) for the role of Justin Hammer. And, no, this is not a storyline where Tony Stark gets into the porn business...




...Hammer is, basically, a British Tony Stark - only eeeeeeevil. He's a billionaire weapons manufacturer, and could (we assume) be involved with the Russkies in the designing of Crimon Dynamo. It all makes sense. But why Rockwell? Why not cast someone....British?


And finally, rumors have The Devil Wears Prada hottie Emily Blunt strapping on the skintight catsuit of Russian assassin Natasha Romanoff, also known as The Black Widow...




...Again, it would fit nicely. You have another commie pinko character, another character right out of the Iron Man canon (Black Widow is sometimes a hero, sometimes a villain - think Batman's Catwoman), and someone who could possibly wind up in bed with Robert Downey Jr. We're all for this (and so, probably, is Robert Downey Jr.).

Of course, we probably won't know anything for sure unti, you know, this movie actually starts filming, so let's all settle down, huh?