WITH IRONHEART, IRON MAN’S MANTLE IS IN GOOD HANDS
AVENGERS: ENDGAME LEFT some mighty big shoes to fill. Not only was the MCU left reeling from Steve Rogers’ retirement, but Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark made the ultimate sacrifice. Thankfully, Sam Wilson stepped up and accepted the role of Captain America in The Falcon And The Winter Soldier. And now, Dominique Thorne’s Riri Williams is poised to continue the legacy of Iron Man in both Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and her own series as introverted tech-whizz Ironheart, while bringing some much-needed Black-girl magic to the MCU in the process.
A child super-genius who made her comics debut in 2016’s The Invincible Iron Man #7, Williams quickly made an impression on both Stark and readers with a suit of armour cobbled together from anything she could find on the MIT campus. But while she shares the Avenger’s intelligence and fashion sense, there’s plenty that sets her apart.
For one thing, Williams doesn’t have Stark’s privilege or wealth: the Chicago native made it into MIT on an engineering scholarship. While Stark started a warmonger who had to survive a trial by fire before becoming a better man, Riri’s call to heroism in the comics is purer, transpiring when her stepfather and best friend Natalie are gunned down in a drive-by shooting.
Their personalities are different, too: Stark is a narcissistic extrovert, while Williams is so wrapped up in her work that she sometimes forgets to enjoy other aspects of life. The introduction of Natalie (who will be played by This Is Us’ Lyric Ross in Ironheart) would help change that, as would Riri’s integration into the superhero community. It’ll be up to Thorne — who was notably cast with no audition — to embody Riri’s fire, curiosity and smarts, all qualities glimpsed in her performances in If Beale Street Could Talk and Judas And The Black Messiah.
Just as Captain America: Civil War gave T’challa a memorable introduction before Black Panther, so too can Wakanda Forever be a boon for Ironheart. The final scene of Ryan Coogler’s 2018 movie teased Wakanda’s international outreach programmes — including a “science and information exchange” spearheaded by T’challa’s sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) — and it would make sense for an eager-to-learn Riri to be a beneficiary of that initiative. Indeed, this could be the start of a beautiful friendship, and the prospect of two super-smart Black women teaming up is tantalising. In any case, a bright future awaits.