The Bizarre Reason Rebecca Hall Was Killed Off in 'Iron Man 3'

In the 16 years since the MCU kicked off its grand cinematic experiment in 2008, much has been written about how long it took Marvel Studios to introduce significant diversity into its storytelling lineup. Said discussion has mostly focused on the hero side, and understandably so, given that heroes are, by default, the central figures of most modern comic book movies. Having said that, comic book villains have a history of stealing the show right out from under the protagonists' feet. They're colorful, dramatic, and often more gleefully entertaining than the good guys.

Even though the MCU is a prime example of this phenomenon, it took a little longer for women villains to grace our screens — nearly a decade into the company's Hollywood reign, in fact. Both of Marvel's inaugural villainesses graced our screens in 2017: Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2's secondary antagonist, and Hela (Cate Blanchett), the inarguable main villain of Thor: Ragnarok. However, Iron Man 3's creators tried to break new ground four years earlier in 2013. Scientist Maya Hansen (Rebecca Hall) was originally supposed to be the film’s big baddie. However, Marvel's higher-ups at the time derailed the idea for a baffling reason.

Why Wasn't Rebecca Hall the Main Villain in 'Iron Man 3'?

Originally, Iron Man 3 writer-director Shane Black and his co-writer Drew Pearce meant for the final installment in leading man Robert Downey Jr.'s trilogy to pull a twist inspired by Remington Steele. The 1980s television series starred Stephanie Zimbalist as a private detective who combats her clients' sexism by hiding her identity behind a male pseudonym: the titular Remington Steele (Pierce Brosnan), a con man who's happy to pretend he's a suave investigator.

During a conversation with UpRoxx in 2016, Black explained the connection between the series and Iron Man 3. "Like Remington Steele, you think it’s the man but at the end, the woman has been running the whole show," Black said. That fake-out man was meant to be Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce), the character who became the primary antagonist in Iron Man 3's final cut. The woman would've been Hall's Maya, a brilliant geneticist and the creator of the Extremis drug.

However, Marvel executives allegedly canceled the concept, claiming that a female villain wouldn’t sell as many toys as a man. Black continued: "We were given a no-holds-barred memo saying that [a female villain] cannot stand, and we've changed our minds because, after consulting, we’ve decided that toy[s] won’t sell as well if it's a female."

Maya Hansen Deserved Better in 'Iron Man 3'

Not only is that an antiquated and, frankly, silly reasoning, it led to Maya’s anticlimactic and awkward death, an Iron Man 3 component that’s never flowed well or carried emotional gravity. In the film, Killian's the ultimate mastermind behind Extremis, although he used Maya's groundbreaking research to create the serum. Maya reluctantly participates in Killlian's evil scheme until a crisis of conscience inspires her to make a final stand — a move Killian cuts short by abruptly shooting her in the stomach. A main supporting character with complicated ties to Tony (and the only other woman in the film, to boot) crawls across the floor before unceremoniously dying.

Hall told Collider in an exclusive 2020 conversation that the "first script" she received "was a better part." Earlier, in a 2014 interview with Entertainment Weekly, she seconded Black's claims about toy sales and shared how the decision minimized the role's screentime and complexity:

"I signed on to do something very different to what I ended up doing. Halfway through shooting they were basically like, ‘What would you think if you just got shot out of nowhere?’ [...] I grappled with them for a while and then I said, ‘Well, you have to give me a decent death scene, and you have to give me one more scene with Iron Man."

The MCU Proves That Women Villains Can Carry a Film

Thankfully, since 2013, the MCU has made improved — if not widespread — strides in its villainess/antiheroine niche. Joining the previously mentioned Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2. and Thor: Ragnarok are Ant-Man and the Wasp, Captain Marvel, Black Widow, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and The Marvels, all of which include primary or secondary women antagonists. Marvel even gave the glorious Agatha Harkness (Kathryn Hahn) of WandaVision her own series, Agatha All Along. Hopefully, the trend continues into future high-profile projects. In order for inclusive representation to truly take hold, we need variety, not only unadulterated heroism. Plus, bad girls just want to have fun, too!

Iron Man 3 is available to stream on Disney+ in the U.S.

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