The most famous, the most infamous, and most forgotten Marvel Studios' MCU recastings

Recruiting superheroes for a big mission is a well-worn part of superhero stories - especially at Marvel Studios right now with Ms. Marvel's Young Avengers recruitment drive - but the recruitment behind-the-scenes to play superheroes seems even more intriguing.

From 2008's Iron Man all the way to Marvel Studios' latest movie offerings, there have been numerous instances of Marvel hiring one actor, then... for reasons... going back and replacing them and hoping fans will either not notice or not care. We're not talking about actor deaths such as the beloved and late William Hurt being replaced by Harrison Ford as Thunderbolt Ross following his death here - we're talking about re-castings for other reasons.

This is the latest topic in Popverse's new weekly series Famous, Infamous, and Forgotten - a vigorous, opinionated, and intense look at one specific corner in the pop culture realm we inhabit to pick out the most famous version of it all, the most infamous version of it all, and the most forgotten version of it all.

And now, into the Marvel Studios casting department:

The famous Marvel Studios' MCU recastings

The first Marvel Studios film Iron Man set the stage for everything that happened since, but its biggest co-star - Terrence Howard as James 'Rhodey' Rhodes - was quickly jettisoned from the franchise for its sequel and all of the Rhodey stories to come, with Don Cheadle taking over the role with 2010's Iron Man 2.

For his part, Howard has been very public as to why he's no longer in the MCU - saying initially it was a breach of contract, and that they offered him a chance to return only if he agreed to a reduced salary. According to Entertainment Weekly, director Jon Favreau didn't get along with Howard on the set of the first film, resulting in Howard's scenes in that movie being cut down as well. The Hollywood trade went on to report that Howard had a higher salary than the movie's star Robert Downey Jr. and was locked in for a three-picture deal, which would've been hard for Marvel - let alone Downey's people - to stomach in the long term.

While I enjoy Cheadle's Rhodes (with the exception of the bizarre twist of Secret Invasion), I'm left wondering what Terrance Howard could've done in the years since with the role if he and Marvel could've come to terms.

The infamous Marvel Studios' MCU recastings

Who is Cassie Lang? That's a big question fans of the Ant-Man franchise have rightly been asking, as every time the character appears in the MCU she's played by a different actor.

Cassie Lang debuted in 2014's Ant-Man played by Abby Ryder Fortson, and she did reprise her role for 2018's Ant-Man & the Wasp. Then things got weird. Fortson was replaced by Emma Fuhrmann for 2019's