Guy Pearce cast in Iron Man 3 as sinister villain

Melbourne, Apr 23 (ANI): Guy Pearce is in final talks to play the villain, as he portrays the role of geneticist Aldrich Killian, in 'Iron Man 3'.

Pearce, who has been enjoying a career-resurgence since appearing in 'The King's Speech', will be joining a cast that includes Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark and Iron Man, Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle, News.com.au reported.

Ben Kingsley is set to play the villain but his character remains shrouded in mystery.

The movie to be helmed by Shane Black, will borrow elements from Warren Ellis' six-issue 'Iron Man: Extremis' comic books, that also heavily influenced the first 'Iron Man' pic, and focuses heavily on the spread of a virus through nanotechnology.

However, the virus story mirrors the infection subplot of Iron Man 2, so it's unclear how much of Extremis Iron Man 3 will use.

Although Iron Man is not as well known as Spider-man or Batman, he has proved a popular movie franchise, with the first two Iron Man films making more than a billion dollars at the box office.

The huge interest in 'The Avengers', which sees Iron Man team up with Thor, the Hulk and Captain America, can be attributed to the popularity of the hero. (ANI)