The daily gossip: Mark Wahlberg wants to take over the Iron Man franchise, and more

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last updated 8 January 2015

1. Mark Wahlberg wants to take over the Iron Man franchise

Unlike Batman or Superman, only one actor — Robert Downey Jr. — has played Iron Man in his four big-screen outings to date. But if Downey were to ever retire from the role, another actor is ready to step into his metal suit: Mark Wahlberg. "I would like to take over the Iron Man franchise," said Wahlberg in an interview with Yahoo! Movies, adding that he thinks he's never played a superhero because he "kind of [likes] playing real people" — like, say, a guy whose best friend is a stoner teddy bear. [Yahoo! Movies]

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Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.

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