After debuting in 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Dominique Thorne’s Riri Williams is set to take on her own solo adventure in the Disney Plus streaming series Ironheart. While a new listing at the U.S. Copyright Office points to it being quite a while before that series hits the streamer, some new information about the series has come to light.
Though it’s not set to stream for another 2 years, a new synopsis for Ironheart–along with some additions to the main cast–provides a little more insight into what to expect. The series is described as one “in which charming teenage super genius Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) returns from MIT to her hometown of Chicago in her iron suit and begins to unravel threads that bring danger and adventure to her doorstep.” While it doesn’t give away much, the synopsis does at least place the setting of Ironheart AFTER the events of Wakanda Forever, clearing up a subject about which there had been some debate.
The filing also fills out the series’ cast a bit more though it’s not quite as revealing as a similar filing that was made for Daredevil: Born Again. Solo: A Star Wars Story’s AldenEhrenreich is listed as Joe McGillicuddy which is almost certainly an alias or throwaway name as it’s widely believed the actor had been cast as Ezekiel Stane, the son of Jeff Bridges‘ Iron Man villain, Obadiah Stane. Manny Montana (Cousin John) and Shea Couleé (Slug) look to be members of the crew of Anthony Ramos’ Parker Robins with Couleé likely a version of Marvel Comics Ulysses Lugman and Montana a version of John King, the actual cousin of Robbins.
Anji White looks to be portraying Riri’s mother, Ronnie, while Lyric Ross looks to be taking on the role of Riri’s best friend, Natalie, who was shot and killed in front of Riri when she was 13. The Many Saints of Newark actor Matthew Elam is listed as Xavier Washington, who seems to be an original character and may end up as a love interest for Riri. Interestingly enough, Regan Aliyah, who joined the cast in August of 2022 and was rumored to be set to portray Zelma Stanton, is absent from the cast list.
Despite their efforts to conceal his identity here, there’s really no mystery to Sacha Baron Cohen’s “mystery man” as it’s been widely reported he will be portraying Mephisto. His presence–and that of the Hood–sets up Ironheart as a unique magic vs. science that should thrill fans when it arrives in 2025.
The recently resolved WGA strike and the yet-to-be-resolved SAG strike have taken a toll on Marvel Studios’ streaming plans. Streaming series such as Daredevil: Born Again and Wonder Man were forced to shut production down which began a game of dominoes with the once robust slate of programming. Without a solid idea of when series would resume production, much less complete it, the studio began to reshuffle its plans to make sure consumers would have something to consume in 2024. As a result, Echo, a finished product, was bumped out of November 2023 and into January 2024 and other series’ release dates, such as those for Agatha: Coven of Chaos and Ironheart, faced some serious uncertainty. Now, as the future of production schedules begins to become a bit clearer, some clarity around the release of these projects may have gained some clarity as well.
According to multiple filings with the US Copyright office, originally found by @ScarletWitchUpd, Marvel Studios has begun to plan out their 2024 and 2025 streaming schedules a little more specifically.
While these dates must certainly continue to be taken as tentative for the time being, it seems the current plan is to release the first episode of Agatha: Darkhold Diaries on September 29, 2024, the first episode of Daredevil: Born Again in January 2025 and the first episode of Ironheart on September 3, 2025. The late 2025 release date for Ironheart comes as quite a shock considering principal photography on the series wrapped in November 2022 and a good deal of footage was shown off at D23 2022 in Anaheim.
If these dates should hold–or even be relatively accurate–it also speaks volumes about Marvel Studios plans for series such as Wonder Man and Vision Quest. As it stands, it would seem that neither of those two series would be on the books before 2026. Given the studio once had eight unannounced series (of which Wonder Man and Vision Quest were two) set to stream between the Fall of 2024 and the Summer of 2025 it will interesting to see just how much fat has been trimmed from the slate since Bob Iger returned.
As production delays begin to stack up amid the ongoing WGA strike, fans are becoming increasingly concerned that Marvel Studios 2024 slate will be wiped out. While that’s certainly one possibility at this point, there are plenty of other options that are far rosier. With the content-less 2020 still fresh in fans’ minds, it’s worth taking a look at how the dips and dives of 2023 might help dodge a deserted 2024.
The Original Plan
Just over a year ago, Kevin Feige rolled out a massive slate update at SDCC ’22. That slate included an ambitious 2024 plan that included two Phase Five series (Agatha: Coven of Chaos and Daredevil: Born Again), two Phase Five films (Captain America: New World Order and Thunderbolts) three untitled Phase Six series and one Phase Six film (Fantastic Four).
Ch-ch-ch-changes
By late September 2022, another Phase Five movie was added when Deadpool 3 was officially announced. Just a month later, Blade was given a September 6, 2024 release date, moving Deadpool 3 to November 8, 2024 and pushing 2024’s Phase Five film total to 4 and sliding Fantastic Four into 2025.. Bob Iger’s return to Disney further altered the 2024 slate as his new mandates concerning the curation of the company’s streaming content shuffled Marvel Studios’ 2023 plans a bit, pushing Agatha: Coven of Chaos firmly out of 2023 and indefinitely delaying the release of Ironheart.
It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to understand that if these projects don’t restart/start production in a reasonable amount of time then they won’t make their 2024 release dates. Could fans be looking at another content-less year in 2024?
Potential New Scenarios
The answer is almost definitely not thanks to streaming. In March, Marvel Studios seemingly accidentally tipped their hand and revealed what looks to be a pretty accurate slate for their LIVE-ACTION series on Disney Plus.Ironheart looks slated to kick off 2024 and there have been no reports that any reshoots or additional photography have been or will be impacted by the strike. It seems most of the work being done on that series is in post-production VFX and it’ll be ready to stream whenever Iger gives it the go-ahead. Principal photography on Agatha: Coven of Chaos should be wrapped by June-ish allowing the show to go into post-production and get ready for a 2024 release. Like every Marvel Studios project, it’s certainly scheduled for a round of reshoots/additional photography and while that likely can’t happen while the strike is ongoing (they would have to have written the reshoots before the strike), they could take place at any time after the strike ends in 2023 or 2024 and still make its way to Disney Plus by mid-2024. Given its nearly year-long shoot, Daredevil: Born Again‘s status is far more tenuous than either of the other two aforementioned projects but so far, so good. It’s also set to be an 18-episode series with recent rumors suggesting it will be broken into two, nine-episode chunks and it’s safe to say that given the shooting schedule, they’ve probably filmed 4 or 5 of those episodes already. While it’s no sure thing, the first nine episodes could be ready to roll for late 2024.
It would seem there is far less certainty surrounding the studio’s 2024 theatrical offerings. Captain America: New World Order has completed a significant chunk of its production and, so far, has not been shut down as a result of the strike; however, reshoots are built-in and as mentioned above will not be done until after the strike. It’s currently set for a May 3, 2024 release, so unless the strike goes on through the end of the year, that date is manageable, though it’s beginning to look like the studio won’t have to hold it.
Even though the delay was just announced, it’s already tough to imagine that Thunderbolts will hit its July 26th, 2024 theatrical release. The strike would likely have to end in the next 4-6 weeks to allow the project to avoid the sort of rushed post-productions that have had Marvel Studios in the spotlight for the last year. Should the strike go on longer than that, it wouldn’t be too hard to imagine Captain America: New World Order being moved to July and having Thunderbolts move as well. But where would it land?
That answer might depend on the content of Deadpool 3. Should production on that project go on uninterrupted, it would be reasonable to assume that it would be ready to hit theaters by next July, should Captain America: New World Order be able to make its May 3, 2024 date. Whether or not the plot of Deadpool 3 is reliant on the other projects currently slated to release before it or not is another consideration and one that we can’t answer at present. However, if it can be moved and it does continue production, it could be ready for July or September, stepping in where it once was before Blade moved there.
While there’s no guarantee, Captain America: New World Order and Deadpool 3 are currently the best bets to release in 2024. The statuses of Thunderbolts and Blade, however, are inextricably tied to the timeline of the resolution of the WGA strike. Films that aren’t filmed can’t be released, so it is currently impossible to know when they’ll hit theaters. However, should the strike end by mid-to-late July, it’s possible that both films could still end up in 2024 with one taking the September 6th date and the other taking November 8th. Which one ends up where would simply then become a matter of which one is further along in production.
All that is contingent on Marvel Studios even feeling as though they need to stay on track with their current scheduled dates which is in no way certain because they are hardly the only studio whose slate will be impacted by the strike. Dates could shuffle at any time which is something we just can’t predict but if we assume they keep the four dates, dozens of scenarios unfold with a few that seem more likely than others.
Best Case Scenario
Q1-Ironheart May 3-Captain America: New World Order Q2-Agatha: Coven of Chaos July 26th-Deadpool 3 September 6-Blade/Thunderbolts Q4-Daredevil: Born Again November 8-Thunderbolts/Blade
A Scenario That Is Neither Best Case Nor Worse Case
Q1-Ironheart May 3-Captain America: New World Order Q2-Agatha: Coven of Chaos July 26th-Deadpool 3 Q4-Daredevil: Born Again
Not Quite Worst Case Scenario
Q1-Ironheart July 26-Captain America: New World Order Q3-Agatha: Coven of Chaos
While the last scenario seems improbable, it’s still on the table. Should the strike stretch out across the summer and into the fall, Marvel Studios will have to greatly rethink their slate. Should the strike end before SDCC ’23, it’s possible that Kevin Feige will stroll on stage with an updated slate; however, given how much things have changed since last year, how seriously should fans even take it?
Marvel Studios is still hard at work on its upcoming Disney+ projects that are set to release in 2023. While they revealed their plans back during San Diego Comic-Con, a lot has changed since, and who knows when we can truly expect any of the series to drop. While we continue to wait on an update for Secret Invasion, which would be the next in line to release, it seems we’ll have a little update on Ironheart to tie us over.
In a brief interview with Solo star Alden Ehrenreich, the actor got a chance to tease what it was like working on the Disney+ series. He doesn’t give away any details, as per usual, but he does hint that this story is “big” but still feels “very personal.
Ironheart is big but also feels very personal. I really appreciate that about it. And it was fun, it was nice to go back and do a big one like that.
Alden Ehrenreich
From set leaks and rumors, we know that the series will tackle a very different kind of storyline, as the tech-based hero will face some rather magical enemies. So, there definitely might be a big-scale action if we’ll see young Riri Williams fly around in her latest suit of armor to take on enemies that have some dangerous abilities at their fingertips.
There’s also the question of who exactly Ehrenreich might be playing and if he might be on the technological or magical side of this Disney+ series’ story. We might have to wait a little bit longer to find out, but perhaps he has a bigger role beyond just this series as well.
As of now, it looks like Marvel Studios will be pushing out three streaming series in 2023. Spread out over Spring, Summer and Fall, the series couldn’t really be any different from one another than they are though all three do share one thing in common: very little is known about them to date! To fix that and get you primed for 2023, we share what it is we know about each project.
Secret Invasion
When news of this series was first broken by the trades, it was described as a Nick Fury-centric project, so after years of being an important supporting character, Fury gets to shine in Secret Invasion. Fans looking for this to be an Avengers cameo fest like the comic book event of the same name are likely barking up the wrong tree. This is likely to be a much more personal and small-scale paranoid thriller that revolves a little more closely around the worlds of Fury and Talos and those in their orbits such as Rhodey, Talos’ daughter and Olivia Colman’s Sonya Falsworth. Kingsley Ben-Adir’s Skrull villain has a history with Talos’ family which lends itself to being a much smaller story.
Obviously, Skrulls have been on Earth for some time now and have infiltrated positions of power and Europe seems to be a hot spot. The official description from Disney Plus indicates that the Skrulls, much like in the comics, want Earth to be their new planet and crew gifts that were handed out indicate that the story may take some inspiration from the comics in the form of Ben-Adir’s faction believing the Earth was prophesied to belong to them. Outside of that, this isn’t the Avengers-level event you’re looking for.
Loki Season 2
Even though there’s great connectivity and continuity from Season 1 with Eric Martin taking over for Michael Waldron, going into Season 2 expecting more of the same would be a mistake. What you think you know about the end of Season 1 may not be quite right…and it could lead to one hell of a wild ride.
All of Season 1’s key players are back and Owen Wilson and Tom Hiddleston‘s fantastic chemistry will be at the forefront again, so expect some more laughs. However, this is still a wild time-traveling adventure and it will explore the fallout from Sylvie’s choices in the Season 1 finale. Ke Huy Quan‘s Bo plays a major role in dealing with that fallout and much like Season 1, you’ll probably be surprised by who the villain of the series actually is (unless you’ve already been spoiled) and how important this series is to the overall plot of the Multiverse Saga.
Ironheart
“Dark arts vs. technology.” It sounded hard to believe at first, but Marvel Studios has taken the dive in Ironheart, due out sometime in the Fall. Riri Williams’ debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever means fans will already know a bit about the character when the series begins which is perfect because it’s going to take some time to wrap their brains around Sacha Baron Cohen‘s Mephisto and his deal with Anthony Ramos‘ Parker Robbins.
The footage of this screened exclusively at D23 put an emphasis on Robbins and his gang of misfits, which he wants Williams to join. It also looked upbeat and incredibly fun, giving the impression that this series may be the surprise hit of 2023.
Following Kevin Feige‘s big summer blowout at SDCC ’22, Marvel Studios’ 2023 streaming slate seemed incredibly ambitious and full. Secret Invasion, Season 2 of Loki, Echo, Ironheart and Agatha: Coven of Chaos were set to be spread out from Spring to Winter, making 2023 Disney +’s most Marvel-ous year to date. No official updates to the streaming slate were given at D23, but as the year has progressed, the possibility that the slate might shift has begun to become realistic. Rumors that Echo might be delayed seemed to be confirmed by showrunner Marion Dayre and that show’s connection to Daredevil: Born Again may lead to other shows being bumped around. In the past, it was Disney’s practice to send out a preview of the upcoming year’s slate to members of the media who would be covering their projects, but given the ongoing impact of COVID on those projects, it’s become difficult for the company to make long-term plans. In the absence of that, fans are left to take what they can find online and right now, that means conflicting information even from official sources.
As 2022 comes to an end and fans are hungry for information about what Marvel Studios projects they’ll be able to catch at home in 2023, it appears that the studio itself isn’t sure. Conflicting reports today from various official branches of Marvel have called into question what exactly the plan might be. First, Marvel’s UK and Ireland account released a small teaser that indicates all five streaming series originally planned for 2023 are still on the docket!
However, a trip over to Disney + Japan shows that only Secret Invasion, Loki and Ironheart are expected to be released in 2023. So which source is to be believed? It’s impossible to say at this point. Marvel Studios official Twitter account has not shared the Marvel UK & Ireland tweet and the Disney website still lists all five projects as 2023 releases and does not seem to have been updated recently. Fans may remember as similar situation arising in 2020 as Marvel Studios seemed to be intent on releasing WandaVision before the end of the year, but did not have it ready to stream until 2021. Unfortunately, with no official release from Disney available, it seems like the studio’s lack of information is working against itself for the time being.
Marvel Studios 2022 slate was as uneven as any the studio has put out in some time. Strong streaming offerings such as Ms. Marvel and Werewolf by Night gave in-home entertainment a boost while theatrically Marvel put out one of its biggest duds in Thor: Love and Thunder. Will 2023 be a stronger year? Like 2022, all of the studio’s films are sequels but unlike 2022 none of the streaming series will add new heroes to the MCU. For 2023 to be a success, Marvel Studios had better have some good stories ready to roll!
Which stories are the members of Team MM looking forward to the most? We ranked them by most anticipated movie, most anticipated series and most anticipated overall…and asked our Twitter followers to do the same! Here’s what we found out…
Charles Murphy
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Ironheart
Secret Invasion
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Loki, Season 2
The Marvels
Ironheart
Secret Invasion
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Torbjorn Frazier
Most Anticipated Movie
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Loki, Season 2
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Secret Invasion
The Marvels
Ironheart
Meghan Hall
Most Anticipated Movie
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Brandi Blahnik
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Most Anticipated Series
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Loki, Season 2
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Loki, Season 2
Darian Scalamoni
Most Anticipated Movie
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Ironheart
The Marvels
Joao Roque Pinto
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Most Anticipated Series
Secret Invasion
Loki, Season 2
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Secret Invasion
Loki, Season 2
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ironheart
Shashwat
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
The Marvels
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Loki, Season 2
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
The Marvels
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Anthony Canton III
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
The Marvels
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Loki, Season 2
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
The Marvels
Hunter Radesi
Most Anticipated Movie
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Loki, Season 2
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
The Marvels
Dalbin Osorio
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Most Anticipated Series
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Loki, Season 2
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Loki, Season 2
Jeffrey Peterson
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
The Marvels
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
The Marvels
Ironheart
MTF III
Most Anticipated Movie
The Marvels
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Most Anticipated Series
Secret Invasion
Loki, Season 2
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Secret Invasion
Loki, Season 2
The Marvels
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ironheart
Jared Kirschenbaum
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Secret Invasion
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Loki, Season 2
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Ironheart
Secret Invasion
Lanfranco
Most Anticipated Movie
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
The Marvels
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Most Anticipated Series
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Loki, Season 2
Secret Invasion
The Marvels
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
Ironheart
Mary Rowe
Most Anticipated Movie
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Most Anticipated Series
Secret Invasion
Loki, Season 2
Ironheart
Most Anticipated Project
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
The Marvels
Secret Invasion
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Loki, Season 2
Ironheart
MM Twitter Followers
Over the course of the week, we ran 3 different polls asking our followers to vote on the same 3 categories. Here are the results…
Following July’s pre-SDCC update to the hypothetical calendar, we thought we were done in 2023, yet here we are with another updated version which will definitely be the last one…right? But as you’ll see, Marvel Studios’ 2023 slate looks quite a bit different than it did pre-SDCC.
*NOTE* we are no longer tracking animated projects nor including them on the hypothetical calendars.
This project went from “it may never get made” to “it’s a D+ project” to being the project that kicks off Phase 5 for Marvel Studios and introduces the Multiverse Saga’s big bad in Jonathan Major‘s Kang the Conqueror. Or at least one version of him. “One of the best scripts Marvel’s ever had.” “A huge movie for the saga.” Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania looks likely to catch the majority of even the most hardcore Marvel Studios’ fans by surprise and as predicted in the last version, Marvel is hyping this one up well ahead of schedule.
We’d previously thought Secret Invasion might kickoff 2023 and Phase 5, but Kevin Feige slated this one for “Spring” at SDCC ’22 and we’re not arguing with the One-Above-All. The paranoia-heavy spy thriller is being labeled as a “crossover event” by Marvel Studios and is supposed to lay the groundwork for Don Cheadle‘s Armor War film which is currently undated.
A first look at the film finally arrived and the trailer has fans wondering which characters are going to survive the emotionally-charged final film in James Gunn‘s Guardians trilogy. While it’s the end of this group’s journey, we actually expect most of the team to come out alive, but permanently changed.
The second season of Loki is shaping up to be nearly as wild of a ride as the first. Some fairly major spoilers have, unfortunately, made their way around the internet but fortunately (and as is often the case) they lack context and completeness so there’s still plenty to be surprised by when this one streams on D+ next Summer.
Footage of The Marvels was shown exclusively to D23 and it looked like an absolute trip! Tonally, The Marvels seems as different as The Winter Soldier was from The First Avenger or as Ragnarok was from The Dark World. Both of those tonal shifts resulted in incredibly successful sequels and this film really looks to have a chance to follow that trend.
Like The Marvels, footage from Ironheart screened at D23 and it looked fantastic. All the rumors of the science vs. magic showdown of Riri Williams and The Hood turned out to be true and the decision to involve Riri in the events of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever means audiences will be much more likely to tune in for the next chapter of her story.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has introduced the world to Dominique Thorne‘s Riri Williams. A young, talented engineer that develops her own version of the iconic Iron Man armor and becomes the hero known as Ironheart. Not only did she have a major part in the latest Black Panther movie, but she’ll also get her own Disney+ series.
In a new interview with Collider, Thorne shares what will make the character stand out from her introduction, we’ll actually get to meet her in her own element. It’s a great sentiment as we meet her while being threatened by Talocan’s god-like leader and dragged along by Wakandans, or as she points it out as “when life is leading her.”
And also we’re getting to see her in her element, which is quite literally the opposite of what we saw of her in Wakanda Forever. We’ll get more time to see what the other colors are and to see how she leads her life, rather than how she is when life is leading her.
Dominique Thorne
The series will also see her continue her work on her new armor. Even while she built a comic-accureate design in Wakanda Forever, she couldn’t just run around with a Vibranium-infused suit of armor. So, she’ll be back to where she started and forced to build upon to create her dream project. Now, she just has more experience and with an unlikely threat on the horizon, she’ll have to figure out something fast.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has finally made its way to theaters, and it’s brought a few fresh faces with it. Among the multiple newcomers is Dominique Thorne‘s Riri Williams, perhaps better known to comic fans as the invincible Ironheart. A genius student attending MIT, Williams plays a pivotal role in Wakanda Forever and is actively set up as a major player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe going forward. While the live-action portrayal of Ironheart is surprisingly faithful to the source material, it’s not always entirely accurate, and as such, it becomes the duty of Murphy’s Multiverse to break everything down and clear up what comes from the comics and what does not. Keep in mind, it’s not inherently bad to make changes to a character, but it is fun to compare and contrast.
Comics – Riri Williams, Ironheart
Debuting in 2016’s Invincible Iron Man (Vol. 3) #7, Riri Williams is a teenage prodigy with an incredibly gifted mind. Originally from Chicago, Williams was born to her mother, Ronnie Williams, shortly after the supposed death of her father, Demetrius “Riri” Williams Sr., in a gas station robbery gone wrong. Growing up under the care of her mother, sister Sharon, and stepfather, it became quickly apparent that Riri was not like other children her age. At only 5 years old, Williams was diagnosed as a “super genius”, something that made it difficult for her to make friends or interact with other people. As a result, Williams received special care to foster her abilities and became something of an introvert, often trapped in her own mind while working on new inventions she hoped would one-day aid superheroes in saving the world. After a tragic shooting causes the deaths of her step-father and best friend, Natalie Washington, 15-year-old Riri accepts an early scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and moves away from Illinois.
At MIT, Williams uses a secret hideaway on campus to construct her own suit of armor out of stolen school material and reverse-engineered Stark tech. When security becomes aware of her activities and tries to stop them, she dons the suit and takes flight. Traversing the country and practicing her newfound abilities, Riri ends up stopping a group of escaped inmates in New Mexico, putting her in the national spotlight but damaging her already-flimsy suit. Luckily for Williams, her actions are noticed by Iron Man himself, who pays her a visit and gives her his blessing to become an armored superhero. She creates a newer, better version of the suit, and joins Tony Stark’s side of the second superhuman Civil War.
Following the conflict, Stark slips into a coma and leaves an Iron Man-sized hole in the world. Using an A.I. duplicate of her mentor, Williams designs a fully-functional, Stark-supported armor and takes over as the active ‘Iron-Person” in the Marvel Universe, adopting the name “Ironheart” and working alongside S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers to stop world-conquering foes. Eventually, Williams joins the Champions, a group of young vigilantes, and grows further into her new role as a superhero. Over time, Riri would go on many engaging adventures, including a trip to Wakanda that earns her an honorary home among its people and establishes a close friendship with its Princess, Shuri. In more recent comics, Riri has developed an intense rivalry with the Mandarin and the Ten Rings. It’s revealed her father, long-thought deceased, was actually alive and a high-ranking member of the criminal organization.
MCU – Riri Williams
Much of Riri Williams’s backstory in the MCU remains unknown, but several elements do appear to be lifted straight from the comics. Like her comic counterpart, Thorne’s Riri is originally from Chicago and, according to a brief comment made by Williams, is close with her mother. A running motif in the film reveals Riri lost her father in the MCU as well, and learned to build machines with the help of a loving step-dad. She is also attending MIT and secretly building a suit of armor from stolen materials when discovered by Shuri and Okoye. While still a “super genius” in Wakanda Forever, Williams is aged up from her 15-year-old comic self and made to be, seemingly, an appropriate age for college. She is brash, confident, and not afraid to hustle her peers if it means making some extra cash.
Williams becomes a mainstage member of the MCU when she constructs a device capable of locating the elusive metal Vibranium from great distances. The implications of this machine land her on the radar of both Wakanda and the hidden undersea nation of Talokan, with their respective leaders Queen Ramonda and King Namor vying for possession of Williams and her creation. Namor wants Williams dead, but she’s fortunate to be found by Wakanda first, with Shuri and Okoye attempting to transport her back to their homeland in one piece. The plan falls apart quickly, however, and Williams is forced to don her secret homemade suit of armor in an effort to save her own life and help the Wakandans escape. Of course, this also fails, and both Williams and Shuri are taken by Namor’s warriors to be held captive in Talokan.
Williams, unaccustomed to a superhero lifestyle, panics for most of her time in captivity. It’s not until she and Shuri are rescued and brought safely back to Wakanda that she once again begins to shine. Surrounded by advanced Wakandan technology, Williams and Shuri help each other manufacture new weaponry for the war against Talokan. Shuri aids in the development of a new suit for Williams, while Williams offers the solution for bringing down Namor. Like in the comics, Williams establishes a unique relationship with Wakanda and Shuri, and, when Talokan attacks Wakanda, is even saved by Ramonda in her last act of heroism. At the end of the film, Riri is left without the upgraded version of her suit but finds her future is more clear after teaming with Shuri to end the Wakanda-Talokan conflict.
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