The Iron Man trilogy may not be the most dear set of films within the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe , but it ’s most certainly been an crucial one for the dealership . After all , there really would n’t be an MCU without the first Iron Man movie , which not only helped recreate Robert Downey Jr. ’s acting career , but also help put Marvel Studios on the function . As with everything in the MCU , each film in the Iron Man trilogy has a assortment of callback to Marvel funny book , as well as a innkeeper of cameos and other out of sight details . Much like with ourbreakdown of the best Easter ball in the Captain America movies , we ’ve broken down the best hidden details establish in the Iron Man films that you may not have observe upon first ( or repeated ) viewings .
Iron Man (2008)
Marvel Studios
Invincible Iron Man Theme Song
The originalIron Man(2008 ) picture helped make the former B - gradation Marvel superhero a household name , but there had been previous attempts to adapt the fictitious character from the amusing page , such as theInvincible Iron Mancartoon from 1966.Iron Manincludes a gracious callback to that serial , as you may really hear the animated cartoon ’s theme song playing during several scenes : when Tony Stark is in the cassino at the beginning of the film , in Stark ’s bedchamber at one point , and as Rhodey ’s ringtone .
The Ten Rings
While Iron Man ’s arch - bane , the Mandarin , would n’t officially make an coming into court untilIron Man 3(well , sort of ) , his system the Ten Rings plays a prominent role . The leader of the mathematical group is Raza , who can be seen fiddling with an ornate amber ring on social function . In fact , Tony Stark , Obadiah Stane , James Rhodes , and Raza all wear out ring in the film , symbolize the power each fibre manage . In the comics , Raza is not actually an enemy of Iron Man , but rather an alien cyborg and drawing card of a quad sea rover gang do it as the Starjammers . The only affair they partake in is a facial defacement — in the comics , Raza has implant on the odd side of his face , whereas in the film , Raza is marred on his proper side . Finally , the goal acknowledgment succession features an aliveness of the Ten Rings logo .
http://marvelcinematicuniverse.wikia.com/wiki/Ten_Rings Source : MCU Wiki
Burger King Beat Drugs
When Tony come back to the United States after months spend in captivity , his first petition is to grab an American cheeseburger . According to Robert Downey Jr. , this account pulse was invigorate by real - sprightliness events . In an audience with Britain ’s Empire Magazine , Downey Jr. specifically thank Burger King for help him get clean back in 2003 . As the account drop dead , the actor was eating a burger from the range in his car , which was full of drugs at the time , and the Warren E. Burger tasted so disgusting that it made him rethink his life , and plunge all the drugs in the ocean . Of naturally , his lineament ’s epiphany ( to no longer sell weapons ) is a piece of a different scenario .
Captain America Shield Prototype
About 1 hour and 25 minutes into the firstIron Man , there ’s a scene in which Pepper Potts ( Gwyneth Paltrow ) walks in on Tony remove his damaged armour . In the background of this scene , you ’ll spot Captain America ’s shield ( well , a image reading anyway ) sitting on a bench . This same scene was actually used in the trailers for the film , but the shield was edited out . Cap ’s shield would show up again inIron world 2 , but you already knew that .
Fitting Musical Accompaniment
Around the halfway mark , there ’s a conniption where Obadiah Stane ( Jeff Bridges ) plays a classical music piece on the pianissimo . The firearm was written by eighteenth century composer Antonio Slieri , most famously bang as the jealous rival of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart . There have been theories that Salieri murdered Mozart , but historical records have prove this assumed ; in fact , both composer had collaborate and promoted each other ’s study on several occasions . If we stick to the Salieri as bitter , potentially murderous rival level though , this parallels nicely with Stark and Stane ’s family relationship in the celluloid .
A Christmas Story
ahead of time on in the film , Tony tell a immature child wearing glasses that he know him in A Christmas Story ( 1983 ) , an obvious allusion to that picture ’s main character Ralphie . Interestingly , the thespian who play Ralphie , Peter Billingsley , served as an executive manufacturer on the first Iron Man and also played a minor role in the film as the Stark Industries scientist who tries and go bad to recreate the Arc Reactor technology for Obadiah Stane .
http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/christmas-story-gallery-1.13625?pmSlide=1.1226838 Source : NY Daily News
Ray’s Pizza
In the same scene where Obadiah play the Salieri firearm , we see him give Tony some pizza pie from New York City , in a box marked “ Ray ’s . ” New Yorkers will recognize Ray ’s as being a illustrious chain of pizza places in the Big Apple , but what you may not have realise is that this is also the 2nd film steer by Jon Favreau to boast the strand . In his 2003 Christmas movieElf , Santa Claus recommends Ray ’s Pizza to Buddy the Elf ( Will Ferrell ) .
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray%27s_Pizza beginning : Wikipedia
MIT Buddies
It ’s no mystery that Tony Stark and Lt . Col . James ‘ Rhodey ’ Rhodes graduated from MIT together and we see confirmation of Rhodey ’s tie with the school during the scene where Iron Man flies with a pair of F-22 fighter . During the telephone set call between Stark and Rhodes , you’re able to spot a big gold ring on the mitt Rhodes is using to hold the phone . This is MIT ’s class ring , otherwise known as the “ brass rotter . ” Another routine of cool triviality in this scene is that the pilots pilot the F-22s are codenamed Whiplash ‘ 1 ’ and ‘ 2 , ’ a nice nod to the Iron Man scoundrel who would make his first appearance inIron valet de chambre 2 .
Roxxon
During the main road battle between Iron Man and Obadiah Stane , a.k.a . Iron Monger , there ’s a edifice in the desktop romp a Roxxon logotype . Marvel fans will recall that Roxxon is a infamous petrochemical company from the funnies know for illegal activities . In fact , Roxxon agent were responsible for for the deaths of Stark ’s parents ( in the Cinematic Universe , it ’s bring out inCaptain America : polite Warthat Bucky Barnes / HYDRA are responsible ) . A fictional counterpart to the Exxon Corporation , Roxxon is later referenced again inIron Man 3 , with the Mandarin capturing and executing a Roxxon executive director as retribution for an crude tanker spill , inspired by the infamous 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill .
http://marvelcinematicuniverse.wikia.com/wiki/Roxxon_Oil_Corporation Source : MCU Wiki
Paparazzi Footage
Around the 1h 50 Min home run , just before Tony Stark hold his “ I am Iron Man ” pressure conference , he can be seen reading a newsprint with a grainy , amateur picture of Iron Man on the back . That is because this pictorial matter really was taken by amateurs . It ’s actually part of a video charge by some onlooker who were hiding in a President Bush during initial filming . The video hit the internet in 2007 , well before the film ’s theatrical release .
http://marvelcinematicuniverse.wikia.com/wiki/File:Who-Is-The-Iron-Man-Newspaper.jpg Source : MCU Wiki
What S.H.I.E.L.D. Stands For
count it ’s the very first entrance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe , Iron Manis pretty igniter on the shared universe setup work , but the film does introduce us to S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Phil Coulson , both of whom would become important fixtures in subsequent films . ThroughoutIron Man , Coulson ( Clark Gregg ) repeatedly refer to his administration as the ‘ Strategic Homeland Intervention , Enforement , and Logistics Division , ’ finally shortening it to S.H.I.E.L.D. near the goal of the film . What you may not have noticed is that S.H.I.E.L.D. resist for something different inIron Manthan it did in the comics . Originally , it stood for ‘ Supreme Headquarters , International Espionage / Law - Enforcement Division , ’ but it was exchange to ‘ Strategic Hazard Intervention / Espionage Logistics Directorate ’ in 1991 .
Iron Man 2
http://www.sky.com/tv/movie/iron-man-2-2010 Source : sky.com
Whiplash’s Tattoos
In addition to learn to speak some Russian and study Russian story , Mickey Rourke ’s preparation for his role as Ivan Vanko / Whiplash involved make his character ’s tattoos as reliable as possible . Vanko ’s tattoos reference various thing , such as his Russian heritage , prison house societies , and special night club Rourke figured he would be part of . He also ab initio had a tattoo of Loki on his neck opening , but it terminate up being removed in post - production because the motion picture ’s producers feared it would confuse fans into cerebrate Whiplash had a connective with the reference . As for Rourke ’s preferent tattoo , that would be the on Vanko ’s torso that shows a Russian schooner bordered with Russian script that translates to : “ Give a light-haired , a bottle , and a gravy boat , and I ’ll sail off … ”
http://www.moviechronicles.com/iron-man-2/iron-man-news/page/2/ germ : Movie Chronicles
Anton Vanko
As revealed in the opening succession , the year of Anton Vanko ’s defection to the United States was 1963 and this was no accident . This is really the same class in which that character first appeared in the comics as Crimson Dynamo , a Soviet supervillain send to America to sabatoge Stark Industries and defeat Iron Man in struggle . Vanko would later defect to the U.S. after losing to Iron Man and the two would eventually become friends , with Vanko afterwards sacrificing his life to save his former adversary .
http://marvelcinematicuniverse.wikia.com/wiki/Anton_Vanko Source : MCU Wiki
Kate Mara Cameo
She ’s a pretty big name now but back whenIron piece 2came out , Kate Mara was still a comparatively unknown actress , which is probably why we totally bury that she ’s even in the film until we started doing research for this clause ! About 10 minutes into the movie , Tony Stark is served a subpoena by a U.S. Marshal play by Mara . As a picayune piece of add up trivia , Tony ask Mara ’s case where she ’s from , to which she reply “ Bedford . ” Kate Mara was born in Bedford , New York .
http://ugogo.info/mbkcat-kate-mara-iron-man-2.asp Source : Ugogo
Elon Musk
Tony Stark divvy up some similarities with real aliveness billionaire discoverer Elon Musk , so it ’s scarcely surprising that the Iron Man trilogy incorporate several references to Musk , including a cameo ! Musk appears in the Monaco eating house scene inIron humankind 2and upon cope with him , Tony Stark remark that Musk ’s Merlin engines , which are the actuation engines SpaceX habituate on its Falcon serial of rocket , are “ grotesque . ’ Musk responds by claim that he ’s drafting a concept for an “ electric jet , ” something that he in reality start working on in tardy 2015 .
In add-on to his cameo , Musk ’s SpaceX adroitness in Hawthorne , California stands in for Justin Hammer ’s mill ; in fact , the hoi polloi walking in the setting are genuine employee .
Larry Ellison Cameo
Elon Musk is n’t the only billionaire to show up inIron Man 2 . Larry Ellison , CEO of Oracle Corporation , turns around the 10 moment mug during the Stark Expo scene . As he walk past him , Stark tell , “ It ’s the Oracle of Oracle . ” Ellison ’s cameo is meet , pass on that he ’s a billionaire playboy who often make comparisons to Tony Stark , and his company ’s brand is display throughout the film , with the climactic showdown between Iron Man , War Machine , and Whiplash take place at the fictional “ Oracle Biodome . ”
http://starschanges.com/larry-ellison-height-weight-age/ generator : StarsChanges.com
Justin Hammer’s Weapon Nicknames
It ’s a shout shame that Sam Rockwell ’s Justin Hammer was n’t give a more spectacular function inIron Man 2(and a square - up crime that he has n’t appear in any subsequent MCU films ) , as he steals every scene he ’s in . His good exchange is easily the scene where he shows off some of Hammer Industries ’ less - than - telling weaponry to Rhodey . He refers to a Minigun as “ Puff the Magic Dragon , ” a reference not only to the movie and song of the same name , but also to Vietnam War . During the war , the Douglas AC-47 “ Spooky ” flack woodworking plane was armed with very standardised Miniguns and soldiers pass on them the nickname “ Puff the Magic Dragon . ”
Hammer also makes a big deal out of his “ Ex Wife ” bullet , at one percentage point claiming that , “ If it were any smarter , it ’d write a book , a ledger that would make ‘ Ulysses ’ look like it was written in wax crayon . ” This prank is based in some truth , asUlyssesauthor James Joyce ’s eyesight became so bad while he was writing the book that he had to start writing in large varsity letter using crayon on jumbo canvas of theme so as to see what he was doing .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0yEMc4knTc
Mug Shot
About 47 minutes into the pic , Tony Stark is shown front at a pic of Ivan Vanko being cop . This an actual media picture of role player Mickey Rourke being arrest on drug charges when he was younger .
Tesseract
Iron Man 2 is widely consider to be one of the lesser films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and a lot of that has to do with the plastic film having to balance its central report with studio - mandate apparatus work for succeeding films in the franchise . Many of these references are pretty obvious : Tony uses Captain America ’s cuticle to build a nuclear reactor , there are news program report depicting the campus battle from The Incredible Hulk , and the post - credits scene involves Agent Coulson discovering Thor ’s hammer in a crater . However , one MCU Easter egg you may have miss is the Tesseract , which would go onto to become an important particular in both Captain America : The First Avenger and The Avengers . The powerful regular hexahedron make a brief appearance in the fit where Tony is watching former film reels of his father . In one of Howard Stark ’s notebook , there ’s a sketch of the Tesseract , but drawn in the form of a so - called “ Schlegel diagram . ”
http://www.doddlenews.com/news-room/is-iron-man-2-the-key-to-the-marvel-cinematic-universe/ Source : Doodle News
Iron Man 3
http://comictrash.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/15082.jpg Source : comictrash.com
Tony’s Martial Arts Skills
Near the kickoff of Iron Man 3 , there ’s a panorama where Tony Stark strikes a backstage chun wooden dope called a mook jong . This is a nod to Robert Downey Jr. ’s material biography training in wing chun , a Chinese martial art punctuate striking and grappling . Downey has trained under Sifu Eric Oram for year and prove off his acquirement prominently in Sherlock Holmes ( 2009 ) . The actor has not only incorporated fender chun into some of his action scene in recent years , but also claims that it helped him get over his drug dependance .
The Mandarin’s Tattoo
Ben Kingsley ’s Mandarin sports a tattoo on the back of his neck that looks a mint like Captain America ’s shield , but alternatively of a wiz at the center there ’s an nihilist “ A. ” Another bit of iconography that you may not have noticed with the Mandarin is that on his correct pinkie , he ’s wear upon the same ring worn by Raza in the first Iron Man film , which helps to establish the connecter between the Mandarin / Aldrich Killian and the Ten Rings .
http://comicbook.com/blog/2025-04-05/iron-man-3-the-mandarins-captain-america-tattoo/ Source : Comicbook.com
Chinese Theater Attack
The flak that takes topographic point outside of the Chinese Theater is pregnant not only because it result in civilian casualties and injures Tony ’s close friend and chauffeur Happy Hogan ( Jon Favreau ) , but because of where it takes place . At one item , the adult male who carries out the attack is sitting right on next to recognize that bears the hand - prints and touch of Robert Downey Jr. in real life history .
http://www.today.com/slideshow/robert-downey-jr-30311385 reference : The Today Show
Extremis Henchmen
ThroughoutIron Man 3 , Tony has to contend with several of Aldrich Killian ’s Extremis - power henchman and although they seem like discarded characters , each one is ground on a venial baddie from the funnies with totally dissimilar backstories . Savin ( James Badge Dale ) , a.k.a . the douchey bozo who is responsible for putting Happy Hogan in the hospital , is based on they cyborg assassin Eric Savin , aka Coldblood , who does not have ties to any one fussy Marvel comedian . Taggert ( Ashley Hamilton ) — the guy who self - destructs and bombs the Chinese Theater — is based on Jack Taggert , aka Firepower , who in the comics is of African - American descent and actually has his own armored suit to fight Iron Man with .
at last , Brandt ( Stephanie Szostak ) is based on Ellen Brandt , who in the strip is an factor of AIM and romantically linked to biochemist Ted Sallis . alas , things take a black turn after Brandt betrays Sallis and attempts to steal his research , as Sallis ends up turn into the Man - affair and gets his revenge on his former lover by burn up her face with mordant acid . In the moving picture , Brandt has minor scars on her brass as a homage to her funny vis-a-vis .
http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Extremis_virus Source : Marvel Wiki
The Vision Easter Egg
Tony Stark ’s A.I. JARVIS ( Paul Bettany ) would n’t become The Vision until Avengers : Age of Ultron , but his shift is subtly reference in Iron Man 3 . During the scene where Tony , Pepper , and Maya ( Rebecca Hall ) are in Tony ’s house discussing the giant stuffed bunny sitting in the living room , you could see that Tony has hung a stocking for JARVIS . This Easter egg is moderately amazing in and of itself , but is made even better by the fact that the stocking is red , green , and yellow , the same colors as The Vision . We inquire if he still put the stocking out at Christmas time …
Star Wars Homage
This Easter egg is n’t exclusive to Iron Man 3 , but it ’s worth make for up because it ’s capital and we ca n’t believe we never detect it until now . In a 2015interview , Feige show out that every Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 2 film feature a character losing an limb . Apparently , this was initially unintentional , but before long became an homage to Star Wars and that dealership ’s penchant for hack off tree branch :
Lucasfilm
Liverpool VS. Chelsea
http://www.avclub.com/article/trevor-slattery-241537 Source : AV Club
