First off, some bad news from the LA Times:

“I saw [‘Iron Man’ and ‘Iron Man 2’ director] Jon Favreau at the Scream Awards and we had a conversation. He said, ‘I hope things are working out for you because we’re writing stuff for you.’ Then all of a sudden last week I talked to my agents and manager and things aren’t really working that well.”

Jackson might just have been taking a public position that could lead to a bigger payday (it certainly wouldn’t be the first time a Hollywood star used an interview as a negotiating tactic) but he seemed especially sour on the whole the topic of working with Marvel …

“There was a huge kind of negotiation that broke down. I don’t know. Maybe I won’t be Nick Fury. Maybe somebody else will be Nick Fury or maybe Nick Fury won’t be in it. There seems to be an economic crisis in the Marvel Comics world so [they’re saying to me], ‘We’re not making that deal.'”

I called Marvel Comics and they gave me a statement that suggested that they still want to see Jackson wearing the eyepatch. “Marvel does not comment on active negotiations,” was the boilerplate response, but there was that emphasis on the word “active” in the voice of the spokesman who phoned me back.

I’m sure we will get some solid answers in the weeks or months to come on Jackson’s future in the Marvel universe, but for right now it looks like it is up in the air…

Now on to some lighter, sexier news, looks like Marvel may have found their real life BlackWidow, courtesy  of Variety:

With Mickey Rourke and Sam Rockwell negotiating to play key villains in “Iron Man 2,” Marvel Entertainment and director Jon Favreau are now looking for the right thesp to play femme fatale Black Widow, another nemesis for Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark.

Emily Blunt has emerged as the frontrunner to play the role of Natasha Romanoff in the “Iron Man” sequel. She’s a Soviet superspy who doubles as Black Widow, a beauty in a skintight black costume enhanced by high-tech weaponry.

Blunt, whose credits include “The Devil Wears Prada,” “The Jane Austen Book Club” and “Charlie Wilson’s War,” will get a profile boost when she stars with Benicio Del Toro in the Joe Johnston-directed “The Wolf Man” for Universal.

Marvel would not comment on the Black Widow casting. The Justin Theroux-scripted “Iron Man 2” will begin production in the spring for release by Paramount in summer 2010.