Guy Pearce be interested in returning to the MCU as his Iron Man 3 villain Aldrich Killian. Robert Downey Jr.'s third solo outing as Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, was the first movie to arrive after the blockbuster The Avengers and further contributed to the MCU's growing popularity back in 2013. Iron Man 3 focused on Tony as he dealt with his Avengers-related PTSD while confronting the emergence of new threats. Ahead of the movie's release, the main villain was marketed to be The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley). However, Iron Man 3 had quite the twist in store for audiences, as The Mandarin ended up being nothing more than a drunken actor named Trevor.

Instead, Iron Man 3's real bad guy was Pearce's Killian, the founder of A.I.M. and the creator of the Extremis tech. As Killian was dispatched during Iron Man 3's climax thanks to an Extremis-enhanced Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), he hasn't been seen again in the MCU. However, Pearce's performance was well-received by audiences, and many would be interested in having him return somehow. It helps that A.I.M. is a major organization in Marvel Comics and has yet to reach its full potential within the MCU.

Related: Iron Man 3's Original Villain Plan (& Why It Was Changed)

If Marvel wanted Pearce back, he would be open to it. The actor recently sat down with Screen Rant to talk about the home release of his film The Last Vermeer, and we asked him if he would have any interest in playing Killian once more for the MCU. As Pearce had such a great experience on Iron Man 3, he would definitely be on board with a reprisal. Pearce said:

Guy Pearce: I would certainly consider reprising it if they were interested in doing so. It was fantastic. It was great. I love playing that character. I loved working with Robert, of course, and Shane, our director, and Gwyneth who is adorable. I had a really, really great time. Who knows how we could do that?

Guy Pearce as Aldrich Killian in Iron Man 3

The question of "how" is a good one, since Killian's fate looked pretty brutal. However, Marvel has an excellent track record when it comes to bringing actors back, even if their characters have died. Avengers: Endgame alone featured numerous returns, from Alexander Pierce (Robert Redford) to Crossbones (Frank Grillo). In short, Killian's death isn't the biggest obstacle in the way of a return. Instead, it would likely be a matter of finding a place for him. One potential option is the upcoming Disney+ series Armor Wars, which will follow Rhodey (Don Cheadle) as he investigates what happens when Iron Man tech falls into the wrong hands.

Even if it's only in flashback form, there could be a way to bring Pearce back into the MCU fold. He's certainly interested in the possibility, and many would like to see Killian's story with A.I.M continued in some form. Though it might not be happening just yet, anything can happen within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. If the powers that be wish to revisit Iron Man 3's big bad, Pearce is on board.

More: What Every Iron Man Villain Left With Tony Stark

The Last Vermeer is now available to own on Digital, Blu-ray and DVD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.

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