The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) reveals itself as a vast plain of existence just waiting to be explored by the everyday superhero fan. As we hit Phase 5 of the Marvel timeline, new characters such as the “New Avengers” from Thunderbolts are making their big screen debut, creating hype for what’s to come in their productions.
Adding to the already equipped list of heroes is one debuting on the small screens, which has created much talk about her story on Disney+. “Ironheart” is an upcoming television series following genius inventor Riri Williams, who was inspired to follow in the footsteps of Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. Here are some fun facts about the MCU’s newest femme hero to get you started on her story:
1. She Reverse-Engineered Iron Man’s Suit
As a genius inventor endorsed by Tony Stark himself, Riri Williams was given the chance to work on her own inspired Iron Man suit, which fans were able to catch a glimpse of in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”. In the comics, her first suit was based on Iron Man Armour Model 41, which was one of Tony Stark’s older models that she reverse-engineered to put together. When her personal project was found out by the FBI, she went on the run, which marked the start of her hero story.
2. She Is An Ally Of Wakanda
Riri Williams made her first MCU appearance in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”, where she was brought in by Shuri to aid in the upcoming war in the city. As war raged in the Citadel, she was protected by Ramonda, the Queen of Wakanda, who had sacrificed herself to save Williams. Feeling guilty for the death of the Queen, she aided Shuri in the battle to defeat Namor, where we catch a look at Ironheart in action with a newly improved Ironheart armour. She was named an honorary citizen after the battle.
3. She Dropped Out Of MIT To Become Ironheart
Following the “Ironheart” comics, Riri Williams debuts as a genius inventor enrolled in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). However, things were not as bright as they seemed, as her time in school was met with disrespect from her faculty’s Dean. She scrapped the whole balancing school work with superhero work and dropped out of MIT to focus solely on her new life as Ironheart.
4. A Founding Member Of The Champions
If you aren’t familiar with the Marvel comics, The Champions is a band of younger heroes of the Marvel comics formed when Ms. Marvel, Miles Morales, and Nova quit the Avengers. They recruited Ironheart as a member as they formed a team that cared more about helping people than just about fighting bad guys. Not much is revealed yet about its MCU adaptation, but we could be seeing a premiere on Disney+ after “Avengers: Secret Wars”.
5. Ironheart Has her Own JARVIS
In a similar manner to Tony Stark’s humorous AI, JARVIS, Ironheart also created her own AI, which helps her fight crime. Her AI is called the Neuro-Autonomous Technical Assistant & Laboratory Intelligence Entity, or NATALIE for short. The name has significance to William’s past, as that was her friend’s name who had been shot during a drive-by shooting. NATALIE personality is based on William’s memories of her friend, which take a more dominating persona.
Are you excited about the newest addition to the MCU? Ironheart premieres in Malaysia on Disney+ Hotstar on 25th June 2025, with a three-episode drop.
Watch the Ironheart trailer below:
Source: Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki, Marvel, YouTube
Alyssa Gabrielle contributed to this article
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