Although Terrence Howard got first crack at the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s James Rhodes in 2008’s Iron Man, Don Cheadle has inhabited the role since 2010’s Iron Man 2, which saw Rhodey becoming War Machine. 14 years later, Cheadle has played the character in 10 MCU projects, including the Disney+ subscription-exclusive shows The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, What If… ? and Secret Invasion. Additionally, Cheadle’s been set for years to finally take center stage for Armor Wars, which was originally conceived as a TV show and will now be an upcoming Marvel movie. The actor joked about the project when recently asked about its status, but if I’m being real, I am legitimately worried about where things stand with Armor Wars.
How Don Cheadle Joked About Armor Wars
Don Cheadle has been doing the press rounds for his new miniseries Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, which can now be streamed with a Peacock subscription, and one of his stops was TODAY. During the conversation, Al Roker asked Cheadle if there was anything he could tell him and the other hosts about Armor Wars, and the Boogie Nights alum responded:
What’s Armor Wars?
Cheadle immediately smiled after making that joke, then dropped the classic line of, “I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.” So yeah, no one’s going to be prying answers out of him about Armor Wars. In fairness, Marvel makes it abundantly clear to its actors that they’re not to share spoiler-y information under any circumstances, and various people have amusingly talked about Marvel sending snipers to follow them to ensure they’re following this rule.
Is Armor Wars Even Still Happening?
I can understand Don Cheadle not wanting to share any specific information about Armor Wars, but at the same time, I am concerned about whether it’s actually still happening. It’s been three years since the project’s existence was revealed in its TV form, and two years since it was decided to turn it into a movie. In case you’re unaware, Armor Wars is inspired by the same-named storyline from the Iron Man comics will follow James Rhodes having to deal with Tony Stark’s worst nightmare coming true: the late, great scientific genius’ technology getting into the wrong hands.
Considering that Rhodey has been part of the MCU since the beginning, he’s more than earned the opportunity to lead his own movie. Frankly, I also need Armor Wars to clear up what exactly that Secret Invasion twist means for the character’s life. And yet, this movie, which is being written by Yassir Lester, still doesn’t have a release date assigned yet, and there also hasn’t been any word on who will direct. This year’s San Diego Comic-Con or D23 would have been great times to provide an official update on Armor Wars. Although make no mistake, the announcement of Robert Downey Jr. playing Doctor Doom still would have been the highlight of the night.
Because Marvel Studios has never officially announced Armor Wars as part of its film slate, taking these lack of updates into account, I can’t help but worry that Marvel may end up silently shelving the project. At this point, it’s doubtful Armor Wars would be ready in time to shoot and be ready to take that February 13, 2026 slot Marvel grabbed. The November 6, 2026 may be doable, thought I’d rather that go to something like Doctor Strange 3. Then there are the two post-Avengers: Secret Wars dates reserved in 2027, but I’m hoping Spider-Man 4 and the X-Men reboot snag them instead.
I’m not ready to throw in the towel entirely on Armor Wars yet, but it is strange that after all this time, it hasn’t really made any significant progress moving forward. But hey, maybe Don Cheadle is privy to some positive news on its status that just isn’t to be disclosed to the public yet. If that’s the case. I await with bated breath that he, Kevin Feige or anyone else over at Marvel can share it with us commoners.