Converge Weekly

The highly anticipated spring sequel to the blockbuster 2008 film Iron Man is slowly showing the beginnings of an ambitious marketing campaign, after some mysterious movie stills were released to Super Hero Hype just a few days ago.

Iron Man 2 is set for release of May 7, 2010; almost two years to the date of the original release. No official synopsis has been issued, and all that is certain is that the film will introduce many new characters, such as Nick Furey, Whip Lash and the Black Widow; played by star actors Samuel L. Jackson, Mickey Rourke, and Scarlett Johannsen respectively. Don Cheadle also makes his way into the film as Iron Man’s closest friend and ally James “Rhodey” Rhodes, a part played by Terrence Howard in the 2008 film.

Late last week (in what seemed to be the makings of a viral marketing campaign), two cryptic clippings in regards to the second film were released by Paramount Pictures. The first release is a promotional poster released featuring a dark-looking Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko, the Russian criminal with a grudge against Tony Starks. Though nothing is said, Vanko’s placement in front of a collection of news clippings featuring Starks indicates that he will be a focal enemy to watch for in the film. Curiously, there has been no release of any photos of Cheadle’s character as War Machine, which could very well be a timed devise to signal an important message about his role in the film.

The second release is a fictional newspaper article that picks up where the movie’s last scene left off. It details that Tony Starks has recently announced that he is the Iron Man and that he will be pulling Stark Enterprises out of the weapons manufacturing industry. The article mentions nothing else, but two key clues indicate that there will be more to the story. For one, a semi-transparent arrow can be seen in the article, pointing towards Tony Starks who happens to appear out of the darkness next to the article. Secondly, the one and only word highlighted in the clipping is ‘Secret’, indicating to the readers that it will be focus of something later.

Nothing further has been released, but it has been rumored that 42 Entertainment will be behind the marketing campaign. Any fan of the company or interactive viral marketing campaigns will know them as the company that spearheaded the highly successful Dark Knight campaign a few years back. If so, you can expect to see more cryptic photo releases, alternate reality game websites and interactive clues leading up to the release. Expect to enjoy the campaign, even in the case that  42 Entertainment will not be responsible for it. With the overwhelming success of the Dark Knight and the interaction is brought between the fans and the studio, its clear that all the film studios are now aware of the importance of a well-executed and interactive campaign.

SOURCE: Examiner.com