Beyond that, race has always been a bit of a non-factor for the general idea of Nick Fury. With the Mandarin, his ethnicity is a very important part of his character. Calling a French guy 'The Mandarin' wouldn't make much sense.
Looking at more of the details, I really like this project. Ever since the utter mess that was Halle Barey as Storm (She once stated on Leno that being a black actress in Hollywood was hard and she was "reduced to doing a comic book movie." She changed her tune when the checks started rolling in), I've had an appreciation for actors who respect the medium they're translating. Downey's apparently a long time fan of Iron Man and Paltrow actually borrowed a bunch of old comics from her husband.
I'm also enjoying the apparent forethought Favreu has on the movie. He wants it planned as a trilogy.