The unfortunate demise of Tony Stark’s Iron Man has left a deep hole in MCU. His absence is felt throughout the current Phase 4 of The Multiverse Saga. However, Ironheart – the upcoming entry of Phase 5, is expected to fill this gap.
Although Marvel had kept the TV series’s details tight under wraps so far, some recent images have surfaced online.
Ironheart – the character
In the Marvel comics Riri Williams (15 yr old) – a child prodigy, ends up creating her own prototype version of the Iron Man armor. She does so by reverse engineering one of Stark’s suits. When she was thirteen years old, Riri, her family, and Natalie were caught in the line of fire when a drive-by shooting hit some bystanders.
Riri remains the sole survivor of the incident. Later she even assists Iron Man during Civil War II storyline against the forces of Captain Marvel. Soon after, Tony falls into a coma and Riri decides to continue his legacy as a hero. This is how she obtains the title of Ironheart. Ironheart was created by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato and first appeared in Invincible Iron Man (Vol. 4) #3 (2017).
Ironheart – the TV series
In December 2020, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige announced the Disney+ television series Ironheart. It was later revealed that the actress Dominique Thorne will portray the titular character and will make her debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. In the recent Comic-con trailer for the movie, Williams can be seen carving out a heart on Vibranium sheets.
The series shall consist of six episodes, with Sam Bailey directing the first three and Angela Barnes directing the last three. Additionally, Anthony Ramos, Harper Anthony, Manny Montana, Alden Ehrenreich, Shea Couleé, and Zoe Terakes have been cast in undisclosed roles, with Lyric Ross cast as Williams’ best friend. Chinaka Hodge will serve as the head writer of the series.
Ironheart – the leaks
On August 8, a few pictures from the set of Ironheart series were leaked online.
Out of three pictures leaked, two show Thorne in a motion capture suit, donning half the armor. While the third one captures the complete look of the Ironheart armor. The armor has since been criticized for its chunky look (unlike more sleek suit in comics) by some Marvel fans. Some fans feel that the suit has more similarity to the character Doom Slayer than to Iron Man.
However, as the case was with Stark’s suit, Riri’s armor will also undergo progressive changes in future MCU projects. Marvel Studios is known to tweak stories from their comic book counterparts in order for them to adjust to their current MCU timeline.
The Hood and Agatha Harkness in Ironheart
Along with Ironheart’s suit, eager fans have also received confirmation of Anthony Ramos playing the character of The Hood in the series. With the show rumored to have many mystical elements to it, this seems like a great and logical inclusion. Much like Dr. Strange, The Hood (aka Parker Robbins) encounters a mystical cloak and a pair of boots that grants him mystical powers. But he’s never afraid of getting his hands dirty and picking up a pistol if that’s what the situation requires. The Hood will probably be the main antagonist in the series.
Brazilian fan account Feiticeira Escarlate Brasil reported a leak claiming that The Hood won’t be acting alone. Instead, none other than Wandavision’s resident nosy neighbor and meddling witch Agatha Harkness will serve as his mystical advisor. This might have big implications for Agatha’s upcoming spinoff, Agatha: Coven of Chaos.
However true these leaks may be, they surely have piqued the interest of Marvel fans for the series. It will be interesting to see how marvel handles the legacy of Tony Stark in face of Riri Williams. With the divisive performance of Phase 4 projects so far, one can only hope the best for the next phase of MCU.
Ironheart is currently set to premiere in autumn 2023, as part of phase five of the MCU’s The Multiverse Saga.
