Steve Jobs Personally Called Disney CEO to Say He Hated ‘Iron Man 2’
Click here to read the full article.
Steve Jobs is not a fan of “Iron Man 2.” An excerpt from Bob Iger’s recently-released book “The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company” has gone viral for revealing that Jobs called Iger personally to complain about the 2010 superhero sequel. Jobs was blunt with Iger, telling the Disney executive that “Iron Man 2” was more or a less a horrible movie.
Iger writes in the novel (via Screen Rant), “When ‘Iron Man 2’ came out, Steve [Jobs] took his son to see it and called me the next day. ‘I took Reed to see ‘Iron Man 2′ last night,’ he said. ‘It sucked.'”
More from IndieWire
“Iron Man 2” opened in theaters nationwide in May 2010 from Paramount Pictures. Although Disney and Iger were not involved with the development or distribution of “Iron Man 2,” the sequel’s release took place less than a year from the date Disney purchased Marvel Entertainment in a giant $4.24 billion deal. The success of “Iron Man 2” would partially determine Marvel’s future under Disney, and Iger admits that Jobs was not necessarily wrong in his opinion. Iger writes he was aware that “Iron Man 2” was not a masterpiece but he “couldn’t let [Jobs] feel he was right all the time.”
“Iron Man 2” was not a critical favorite but it was still a financial success, which is what Iger reminded Jobs. The movie grossed $623 million worldwide, a boost from the $585 million that the original “Iron Man” earned worldwide in summer 2008. Disney would not start developing Marvel movies until Joss Whedon’s “The Avengers,” which Disney released in 2012 to over $1 billion worldwide.
Iger and Jobs were friends throughout their respective careers. Another excerpt from Iger’s book gained national attention earlier this month for revealing Iger’s belief that Disney and Apple could have merged if Jobs had not passed away at age 56. “I believe that if Steve were still alive, we would have combined our companies, or at least discussed the possibility very seriously,” Iger writes (via Variety).
Fortunately for Iger and Disney, the rougher critical response to “Iron Man 2” did nothing to tarnish the popularity of Marvel films or of the “Iron Man” franchise. The next sequel, “Iron Man 3,” was an even bigger billion dollar hit.
Sign up for Indiewire's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
