Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the sequel to the critically acclaimed 2018 film Black Panther, premiered on Nov. 11. One of the film's main highlights was the introduction of Riri Williams, also known as Ironheart, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. One of the key elements of the film is the portrayal of Riri as a young, brilliant inventor who creates a suit of armor that rivals that of Iron Man's. This is a nod to the comics where Riri, a teenage engineering prodigy, creates her own suit of armor after being inspired by Iron Man. Her suit is equipped with advanced technology, including flight, super strength, and energy projection abilities.
In an interview with The Direct, Letitia Wright and Dominique Thorne discussed some of the scenes that were cut from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The deleted scene was similar to a crucial moment from the first Iron Man film, where Tony Stark builds a suit to free himself from captivity. This scene focused on the relationship between Shuri and Riri, who were held captive in the Talokan cave. The two characters used their intellect to come up with a device to escape. Check out Thorne's statement below:
A lot of those moments in the cave were definitely strong, relationship-building moments for Shuri and I. That was definitely the first time that… We obviously know and associate both these characters with an incredible amount of brilliance, but this was, in that cave, sort of the first time that they’re both realizing, ‘Oh, you speak my language. Okay, I don’t have to alter myself. I don’t have to tone it down. We can just get straight to the meat of the problem.'
In this case, it’s the fact that they’ve been kidnapped and that Shuri has gained the favor of Namor at the time. So, there were moments where, actually, how Shuri goes out into Talokan, and she’s getting to see the city where Riri joins them as well, and they discover as they’re taking this view, Riri notices the thing that’s powering them, the Sastun that they mentioned, could be used to help them escape…
And so from that point, it’s really them using that shared brilliance and what Riri’s now seeing as an opportunity to build and strategize their way out of there under the guise of helping them find a more efficient way to distribute their power.From there, the two of them are work-shopping there, working on this thing for them that they say they’ll give them in exchange for their life, but all the while, sort of siphoning off materials and supplies to rig their own distraction and get out of there. And while they’re doing that, just sort of talking about life experiences.
Ironheart's Future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Disney
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever introduces Riri Williams, a 19-year-old genius M.I.T. student who built vibranium-detecting technology, putting her on the radar of Namor and Wakanda. Riri reveals she is already working on building an IronMan-like suit out of scraps, but with the help of Wakandan resources, her suit gets a serious upgrade. The film sets up Riri as Stark's successor, Ironheart, which is the first step towards her becoming a superhero.
With the MCU set to unveil new storylines with even more formidable villains, characters like Riri Williams will be essential. Riri is set to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with her own Disney+ series, Ironheart. While specific plot details remain unclear, the show may follow Riri's journey as she reclaims her suit from Wakanda and embarks on a quest of heroism. Thorne will reprise her role as the titular character, while Anthony Ramos stars as Parker Robbins (a.k.a., The Hood) in his debut live-action performance. After Ironheart, Thorne may feature in Armor Wars alongside War Machine (Don Cheadle). This film is expected to explore Stark technology falling into the wrong hands and War Machine's efforts to rectify it - should it follow its comic book storyline.
As Marvel continues to introduce young heroes like Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau, Riri is predicted to play a significant role in the upcoming phases, particularly in Phase 6, where the Avengers will unite against the Kang Dynasty. Ironheart does not yet have an official release date, although it is expected to arrive this year.