Everything We Know About Marvel’s Ironheart

Here’s everything we know about Ironheart, the new Marvel series announced at Disney Investor Day 2020 that brings Iron Man’s replacement to the MCU. The Disney+ production will be part of the MCU’s Phase 4 and follows a Black teenage superhero, Riri Williams, whose story links to Iron Man in the comics. Because of that very connection, along with a clever narrative twist, Tony Stark could theoretically make a special appearance in new Ironheart series.

Created by Brian Michael Bendis, Riri Williams debuted in the 2016 comic Invincible Iron Man Vol. 2 #7. As a teenage genius, the 15-year-old attends the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and eventually creates her own Iron Man suit. Riri receives official sponsorship from Tony Stark himself, which establishes her as the superhero Ironheart. From there, she teams up with the Champions before going solo and developing a new aerodynamic suit.

The MCU series Ironheart can’t be entirely faithful to the comics for obvious reasons (Iron Man’s death), however, the original Marvel storyline lays the groundwork for some intriguing A.I. subplots. For example, Riri assumes the role of Tony Stark when he falls into a coma after battling Captain Marvel during Civil War II, and then uses her mentor’s A.I. to become a significantly more powerful superhero. As for Ironheart on Disney+, here’s everything we know so far.

Ironheart Release Date Info

As of yet, Marvel hasn’t announced an official release date for Ironheart. The Disney+ series will be part of the MCU’s Phase 4 or Phase 5 (or it wouldn’t have been announced yet), so expect it to premiere sometime in 2022 or 2023 mostly likely.

Ironheart Story Details

Little is known about the Ironheart storyline on Disney+, aside from Marvel’s note that Riri Williams “creates the most advanced suit of armor since Iron Man himself, Tony Stark.” Based on the comics storyline, the superhero will presumably have her own lab at MIT, where she’ll develop the A.I. technology that becomes N.A.T.A.L.I.E. – a reference to her late best friend.

Interestingly, Ironheart is the first target of the organization The Ten Rings, which thematically links Riri Williams to the upcoming MCU film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Given that Marvel also announced a new War Machine Disney+ series called Armor Wars, it seems likely that a crossover storyline will involve Ironheart and Colonel Rhodes teaming up to defend Tony Stark’s technology and legacy. There’s also the possibility that Robert Downey Jr. will appear as Iron Man, if only as part of Riri Williams’ A.I. tech.

Ironheart Cast

Dominique Thorne was officially cast as the Ironheart lead in December 2020. She made her feature film debut as Sheila Hunt in Barry Jenkins’ Oscar-nominated 2018 film If Beale Street Could Talk, an adaptation of James Baldwin’s eponymous 1974 novel. In 2021, Thorn will appear as Judy Harmon in Judas and the Black Messiah, a drama starring Daniel Kaluuya, LaKeith Stanfield, and Jesse Plemons. Thorne was raised in Brooklyn and attended the Professional Performing Arts High School in Manhattan. She later studied at Cornell University, an Ivy League institution.

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Q.V. Hough
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Q.V. Hough is a senior writer at Screen Rant. He’s also the founding editor at Vague Visages, and has contributed to RogerEbert.com and Fandor.

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