The Great Iron Man III Debate

One of the most anticipated films of the year is now surrounded in controversy. Marvel has just signed a large product placement contract with Chinese device manufacturer TCL. Tony Stark will be using a number of TCL devices in the upcoming film. For many Iron Man fans, Stark’s use of foreign devices goes against the character’s core beliefs. After all, Stark is an American captain of industry.

Marvel has told press that the move simply made sense. Not only will the new product placement agreement be the biggest agreement between Hollywood and the China in history, many of Marvel’s fans are now overseas. China and the U.S. signed a trade agreement in February of last year that opened up Hollywood movies to Chinese consumers.

Since that time, the number of Hollywood ticket sales in China has grown drastically. Is Hollywood now pandering to a Chinese market? It certainly seems that Marvel is moving in that direction. Will other film companies follow suit? It’s hard to tell, but you will definitely see a number of TCL products in the upcoming film.

As far as the gadgets that Iron Man will use in his upcoming film, The Verge reports that a 110-inc 4K TV, a few mobile devices, and TCL’s Cloud Storage will all appear in the film. Even though this won’t change the course of the film too much or alter Stark’s future battles in the least, moviegoers and comic fans aren’t happy with Stark’s apparent ‘Made In The U.S.A’ betrayal.

It’s hard to know where to stand on this one. On the one hand, Marvel should stay true to Stark’s character that would never purchase foreign made devices. On the flip side, Marvel has to cater to all markets – especially one as big as China! Is Marvel justified in changing Stan Lee’s epic Iron Man character? While you ponder and post, be sure to check out our Iron Man tee collection – made across the Americas and printed in Canada.