Marvel faces ugly negotiations as talks for 'The Avengers 2' begin

Marvel's Phase Two is under well underway, and after Iron Man 3 raked in $680M in less than two weeks, the bean counters have to be pretty happy. Or....maybe not. The fact is that they're in for a major headache in the coming weeks during the run up to The Avengers 2, and it's going to involve some serious negotiations with the bulk of the cast.

First and foremost there's Robert Downey Jr., whose contract appearances are now exhausted, and thus has some serious leverage in contract talks. He worked out a nice deal initially, and has banked millions from Marvel so far, but that's expected to take a serious jump if they want him for the 'Avengers' sequel. Word is he's already in talks for the next two 'Avengers' films, but nothing on future Iron Man movies at this stage. The last film seemed like a decent wrap-up to Tony Stark's story, so it may be that he only appears when the team assembles.

So not only do they need to get Downey in place, but the same goes for Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, and Chris Hemsworth. Most of them were seriously low-balled with their initial deal, something Marvel was more than willing to agree to, but now the chickens have come home to roost, so to speak.  Reports are that the actors are looking for an upfront payment of $5M, and a back end deal not too different from the one Downey struck. Marvel, as expected, isn't going to be too quick to go along with that. This is the same company who said they merely "broke even" on the first $1.1B The Avengers earned. As for Chris Evans, it's looking like he may have signed a sequel deal while negotiating for Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

The situation could get ugly, too, as Downey has been quite vocal about the money he's earned, and his willingness to simply retire and walk away. Plus, it's looking like one of the conditions for his return would be better deals for his cast mates, and he's basically taking on a "leader" role in representing them. One source tells Deadline "He’s already sent a message that he’s not going to work for a place where they treat his colleagues like shit." 

Marvel's power holds with their willingness to simply recast those who aren't willing to play ball. Terrence Howard was shoved out of his War Machine role after complaining about his salary. The Hulk has been played by three actors up to this point, and there's every reason to believe Marvel would simply cast someone else if they can't sign Ruffalo. Other than Hemsworth, who is a huge star in his own right now, all of the other actors are vulnerable in some way. But we're talking about a situation in which most of the cast earned $200K for The Avengers, while Downey earned $50M. Obviously, something needs to get fixed there, and given Marvel's history with the talent this could get worse before it gets better.

The Avengers 2 opens in May 2015, and considering Joss Whedon is already hard at work on the script, you can probably pencil in Downey for it. Beyond that is anybody's guess. [THR]