Two of my favorite character actors have joined Iron Man 2, according to /Film.

Clark Gregg, who recently directed the Chuck Palahniuk adaptation Choke, and can be seen in the comedic goldmine that is The New Adventures of Old Christine is thankfully back as Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. In the first film, Coulson was used to introduce the concept of S.H.I.E.L.D., which is expected to be a very big part of any subsequent Iron Man film. Gregg is so good at this type of role (see In Good Company) and played really well off of Gwenyth Paltrow's Pepper Potts.

And speaking of extremely attractive ladies, Kate Mara (We Are Marshall) is going to play a role that, as of right now, is being kept secret. Paltrow is coming back and the eye candy factor is going to go off the charts with Scarlett Johansson as the Black Widow, so it should be interesting to see where Mara fits in. Even though Shooter was kind of horrible, We Are Marshall is in my top three sports movies of all time, and Mara was a big part of that in a smaller role.

Iron Man has been my favorite superhero since I was a kid. It was the character that got me into comic books, an obsession that continues to this day. The first Iron Man film was everything I could have hoped for and, from what I've heard so far, the second installment just will add to the awesome hybrid director Jon Favreau has established of comedy, drama, and action film, except without all of the origin story to plow through this time. I will say, though, that I'm extremely saddened by the rumors that the Demon in a Bottle storyline won't be addressed in this film. The story arc, which explores Tony Stark's alcoholism, is one of the best comic arcs I've ever read and should definitely be checked out by anyone interested in Iron Man as a character.

The release date for Iron Man 2 is May 7, 2010 and is shooting right now.