When a number of new Marvel series were announced as part of future Disney+ programming, there were quite a few surprises for comic book fans. One of the biggest was Ironheart. In the series, described as the story of “the creator of the most advanced armor since Iron Man”, Dominique Thorne plays the role of Riri Williams.
You may have heard about Riri when she first caused a stir in the Marvel universe in 2016 on the pages of The Invincible Iron Man. She counted Tony Stark as a mentor, teamed up with Spider-Man Miles Morales and Ms. Marvel, and even faced Thanos. And now Ironheart will appear in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever before jumping into her own show. She even features prominently in the movie’s trailers.
So let’s meet the teen genius to get a sense of what Disney+ has in store for us.
These are the topics we cover here:
- Who is Ironheart, aka Riri Williams?
- The Origin of Ironheart
- Ironheart’s powers and abilities
- Ironheart’s signature villains
- Ironheart in TV and games
- Riri Williams in Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever and the MCU
Who is Ironheart, aka Riri Williams?
Discovered at a very young age as a child prodigy, Riri Williams was determined to become an astronaut until an act of violence changed her life forever. When Tony Stark could no longer be Iron Man, Riri stepped into his armored shoes with a sophisticated, high-tech suit she built herself.
Ironheart may only be a teenager, but the gifted inventor follows in Tony Stark’s footsteps and forges her own path.
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The Origin of Ironheart
Riri Williams was a brilliant 15-year-old college student at MIT when she challenged herself to build a set of high-tech armor just like Iron Man. She worked in her dorm room with parts borrowed from on-campus labs, and she quickly succeeded. However, on her first attempt at superheroes, the patchwork suit fell apart around her. Undeterred, Riri continued her work on the reverse engineered Mark-41 armor and eventually caught the attention of Tony Stark himself.
Realizing she needed an artificial intelligence to make the most of the armor, she boldly asked Stark for it. He was intrigued, but AI was extremely expensive. Soon, the events of World War II took his attention away, and Iron Man was incapacitated as the conflict boiled. Still, realizing that Riri was a kindred spirit and the future of superheroes, Stark had planned ahead. He had created an advanced AI construct of himself to help her while recovering into a coma. Riri finally had the AI she needed and her suit was complete.
The genius teen was inspired to become an armored hero when her stepfather and her best friend were both killed in a drive-by shooting. Determined to find a superhero name that fits better than Iron Girl or Iron Maiden, Riri decided to use Ironheart to honor her fallen loved ones.
Riri operates as Ironheart with the love and support of her mother in Chicago, who will always worry about the young superhero.
Ironheart’s powers and abilities
Riri Williams is a technical prodigy with a super genius intellect. Her armor is similar to Stark’s own advanced suit, and she had his digitized consciousness as an AI to teach and guide her how to best use it.
Thrusters in her hands and feet give Ironheart the power of flight. Explosive repulsor grenades, laser beams, precision missiles and more are stored in her arsenal, designed and built by Riri herself. After her suit was destroyed by Thanos, Riri designed Ironheart 3.0 with a magenta and black design that differs from Iron Man’s classic red and gold. She is constantly tinkering with the technique and adding new technology, such as an experimental stealth mode and solar cells.
The Champions, a young team that included Miles Morales and Kamala Khan, took an early interest in Ironheart. Riri wasn’t one to make many friends and she was nervous to join them at first, but she quickly fitted in. Her adventures as part of the team took her around the world, to outer space and even to another dimension. Her inventions and quick thinking made her an indispensable member of the team.
She struck alone for a short while and returned to MIT, where she built a new AI with a design based on the friend she lost. But a new law banning teens from being superheroes led her back to the Champions as they navigate the new normal together.
Ironheart’s signature villains
Riri is relatively new to crime fighting, but she jumped in rocket propelled feet first. She first took on ninjas led by an Inhuman with the ability to master technology. Later, as part of the Champions, she encountered formidable enemies in Thanos and Man-Thing.
When Ironheart returned to Chicago on her solo adventures, the mystical villain Midnight’s Fire took an interest in her. He offered her a place in the Ten Rings, a worldwide mercenary organization. Ririe refused. She tracked Midnight’s Fire with the help of the Unstoppable Wasp, Doctor Strange, and Shuri and Okoye of Wakanda and eventually found him – along with her biological father.
Ironheart in TV and games
- TV: Disney+ won’t be the first time we see Ironheart on the small screen. She headlined Marvel Rising: Heart of Iron, a 2019 animated film that told her origin story in the Marvel Rising universe. She was voiced by Sofia Wylie. A few months later, she returned for another animated adventure, Battle of the Bands. In 2020, Ironheart, voiced again by Wylie, appeared in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Maximum Venom on Disney XD.
- Spell: Riri also starred in mobile games such as Avengers Academy, Marvel Future Fight, Marvel Puzzle Quest, and Marvel Strike Force. She was also playable in Lego Marvel Superheroes 2 with the Champions Character Pack DLC.
Riri Williams in Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever and the MCU
Riri looks poised to take Iron Man’s place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, although she will seemingly not have Tony Stark’s help as a mentor after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Whether she’s part of the multiverse, a broken timeline, or a new hero inspired by Tony’s sacrifice, she’ll fit right in with the younger roster preparing for Phase 4.
Riri’s appearance in the MCU is a mystery for now, although we do know that Dominique Thorne will play her and she will appear in the Black Panther sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, for her own show. And her addition will certainly be welcome. Can we even see the Champions working together in the MCU? The future of Marvel on Disney+ looks bright.
This story was updated on October 3, 2022 with the latest information about Ironheart. It was originally published in December 2020.
Kelly Knox is a freelance entertainment writer who also contributes to StarWars.com, DCComics.com, Nerdist, and more. Follow her on Twitter on @kelly_knox to talk about Star Wars, Dungeons & Dragons and comics.
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