Warning: This article contains spoilers for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Perhaps nothing encapsulates the essence of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever more than “high point.” With a box office yield that will only continue to shoot for the moon, its status as one of the best films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe‘s Phase Four, far and away the most beloved Marvel Studios theatrical release of 2022, and turns from the likes of Angela Bassett and Tenoch Huerta that simultaneously enriched and shattered our souls, Wakanda Forever has boasted quite a few high points, to say the least.
Another one of these high points was Dominique Thorne‘s MCU bow, marking the first appearance of Riri Williams to the franchise. Her spunk, sass, attitude, and heart ensured that she committed a highway robbery on the spotlight during every other scene, making for a delightful tease of what we’re in for when she returns to star in Ironheart, the Disney Plus series featuring Riri at the center.
Riri’s been through quite a bit already, having aided the Wakandans in their fight against the Talokan, with her Ironheart armor playing a crucial role in neutralizing Namor, subsequently allowing Shuri to put at least a pseudo-end to the conflict. Needless to say, it will be hard for her to adjust back to the relative monotony of MIT, and according to Thorne in an interview with Screen Rant, it’s precisely this dissatisfaction that will be at the heart of Ironheart‘s conflict.
I definitely think that a lot of what we see with Riri in particular, in Wakanda Forever, is the beginning of her having to reckon with this ambition of hers and really start to understand what it might mean. I think that up until that point, and as it’s hinted in the show, she’s moving through MIT. She’s got her own little side business going, making a deal over there until she has a reason to look up quite literally and see these larger worlds that are in front of her that she now has no choice but to face. I think that sort of confrontation of nothing but her own brilliance and her own genius is a very exciting thing in itself.
Ironheart will release to Disney Plus in late 2023. It will consist of six episodes.