Robert Downey, Jr. is suiting up to star in "Iron Man," a superhero movie based on the Marvel Comics character.

Jon Favreau is directing the Paramount Pictures release. Filming is slated to begin in February in Los Angeles.

Downey will portray Tony Stark, a billionaire industrialist and genius inventor who is kidnapped and forced to build a devastating weapon. Using his intelligence and ingenuity, Stark instead builds a high-tech suit of armor and escapes captivity. Upon his return to the U.S., he uncovers a plot with global implications and must don his armor and protect the world.

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Ya think they paid him in coke?

There was a storyline in the comics that had Stark dealing with alcoholism, given Downey Jr.'s own addiction struggles, maybe that's why they chose him for the role.

Bah; he seems too young for Tony Stark!

I say Hugh Laurie.