So, anyone not living under a rock likely remembers the Iron Man movie, right?

And any self respecting Minimate collector should remember the wave of Marvel Minimates, the Action Figure Xpress box set, and the Toys R Us exclusive 2-pack all based on the movie, correct?

Well, word is that there’s going to be a sequel. And word is that there’s going to be Minimate coverage of said sequel.

Speculation started to fly after a preview image popped up on AFX’s Facebook page, advertising an upcoming 2010 exclusive.

Of course, if that’s all we had to go on, we’d file this under rumor and go back to refreshing DSTMatt’s Twitter page every 30 seconds. But, no, Action Figure Pictures (which I had never heard of until Multiverse member blizzerd pointed it out) comes to the rescue with some more concrete news.

The biggest Super Hero movie of 2010 is fast approaching and will thrill fans with high-tech armor, covert government operations, one supremely angry Russian and, we are excited to announce, Diamond Select Toys! Maryland based Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles, LLC has secured a license from Marvel Entertainment to produce collectible action figures and Minimates based on the summer’s surefire blockbuster hit, Marvel’s Iron Man 2!

Diamond Select Toys will bring the Iron Man 2 property to their most successful toy lines, recruiting top industry talent including Gentle Giant for the seven-inch collector-driven Marvel Select action figure line and design-house Art Asylum for the unstoppable Marvel Minimates series of two-inch articulated block figures. Both lines will see releases beginning in March of 2010 and continuing through the summer convention season, including exclusive partnerships with national toy retailer Toys “R” Us and online powerhouse Action Figure Xpress.com.

“After Marvel’s Iron Man 2008 feature film increased the global awareness of this powerful brand and our continued success with both the Marvel Select and Marvel Minimates lines, securing the rights to Iron Man 2 toys was a very easy decision for us,” commented Diamond Select Toys Director, Chuck Terceira. “We’re all huge fans of the first Iron Man film and we’re very much looking forward to highlighting both the comic and movie characters from the Iron Man universe over the next year.”

It sounds like we can expect to see plenty of movie related goodness, and even some comic related love as well. 2010 will be the year my wallet goes on anti-depressants.