Iron Man teams up with China's Dr Wu

Robert Downey Jr. at a promotional event for Iron Man 3 in Beijing. Jiang Dong / China Daily

The Hollywood blockbuster Iron Man 3 will have a Chinese look.

The superhero film will have two versions - one for the Chinese market and the other for US and international audiences.

Both will include significant Chinese elements and footage shot in Beijing last December, according to a Disney spokesperson in an e-mail statement to China Daily. The company acquired Marvel Entertainment in 2009.

Chinese actor Wang Xueqi plays Dr Wu, a new character who masters both Chinese medicine and modern science, and is a friend to Tony Stark, the protagonist.

Robert Downey Jr., who has reprised his role as Stark in the third installment of the franchise, describes the film as "a multicultural story about both the United States and China".

"Dr Wu is kind of the reason Tony Stark is still alive in the end of Iron Man 3," Downey said at a promotional event for the film in Beijing on April 6.

"He is a bit of a prophet of all the trials Tony Stark is going to go through. He is somebody who knows Tony is going wrong, but he will be there for him later."

DMG, a Chinese media and entertainment company, collaborated with Marvel on the Chinese elements in the film, and is marketing and distributing the film in China. The Chinese version of the film will also feature actress Fan Bingbing and will offer specially prepared bonus footage made exclusively for Chinese audiences, according to Disney.

"Marvel Studios' experience working on this film with Fan Bingbing and Wang Xueqi, and in shooting in China has been very positive and has created a springboard for future collaboration with China's talented stars and its growing film and television industry," the Disney statement says.

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