The MCU's Iron Man Replacement Isn't What I Expected & That's A Good Thing Given RDJ's Doctor Doom Role
Ironheart will officially introduce the MCU"s Iron Man replacement after her brief 2022 role, though with an unexpected story that may actually benefit Robert Downey Jr."s return as Doctor Doom. The story of Ironheart will be released on Disney+ in June 2025, continuing the story of Riri Williams coming into her own as an MCU hero after spending some time in Wakanda during Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. In May 2025, Marvel Studios released the first trailer for Ironheart, hinting at many aspects of the show.
From looks at Ironheart"s main villain to Riri"s new suit of armor, the trailer promised a compelling story for the Disney+ show. Perhaps the most intriguing elements about Ironheart"s trailer, though, were the parts of her comic book story that seem absent from the MCU. The changes the MCU has made to Marvel characters have always been prevalent, yet most stories incorporate the more vital aspects of whoever is being adapted. In Ironheart"s case, her status as Iron Man"s MCU replacement is not going how I expected, though this may prove to be a good thing given RDJ"s Dr. Doom return.
The MCU Had To Change Ironheart's Iron Man Story Tony Stark Seems Unconnected To Riri Williams![]()
The main way in which Ironheart"s MCU story seems unexpected to me is the lack of connections between Riri Williams and Tony Stark. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever tied Riri to the advanced technological nation of Wakanda, but I have been expecting Ironheart to tie closer to Iron Man since the show wrapped filming in 2022. Evidently, though, this will not be the case, with the MCU providing several reasons as to why this is different from the comic books.
Tony Stark then fell into a coma after the second Marvel Comics Civil War, yet he continued to guide Riri using an AI recreation of himself...
In Marvel Comics, Riri Wiliams is endorsed by Tony Stark. After the latter sees the armor the former creates, he supports her transition into Ironheart personally, with Riri even fighting for Tony during the second Marvel Comics Civil War. Tony Stark fell into a coma after this war, yet he continued to guide Riri using an AI recreation of himself. The new hero then claimed the title Ironheart as a direct homage to Iron Man, vowing to continue Tony Stark"s legacy while he was unable to do so himself.
In the MCU, however, the diffrences between Iron Man and Ironheart are prevalent. As I have alluded to, it seems no links between Riri Williams and Tony Stark will be included in the show. The reason for this is obvious, given that Iron Man died in 2019"s Avengers: Endgame. That said, I still expected the AI element of Stark to be present in Ironheart, but it seems this is increasingly unlikely now. Thanks to Iron Man"s MCU death, all the links to Riri Williams have apparently been removed.
Ironheart Seemingly Isn't About Iron Man's Legacy Like I Expected Ironheart Will Forge Her Own Path Close Although I expected the AI element of Tony Stark guiding Riri to be part of Ironheart, I am not shocked the MCU show decided to move away from this plot point. After all, there was no connection between Tony and Riri in the former"s life, so why would there be after his death? Nonetheless, I still expected Ironheart to address the element of Tony Stark"s legacy in its story, but the show is moving in another direction, if the trailers are anything to go by.
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Related Iron Man’s MCU Legacy Faces Its Biggest Challenge In 1 Upcoming MCU Release (& It’s Nothing To Do With Dr Doom) Iron Man"s MCU legacy might be in jeopardy in one upcoming Disney+ show released before Robert Downey Jr."s Doctor Doom debuts in Avengers: Doomsday.
Posts 1 Even beyond the comic book connection between Riri and Tony, I figured the sheer importance Iron Man held in the MCU would raise some questions about legacy. Years after his death, people are still talking about Iron Man in the MCU, meaning a hero flying around with an iron suit on resembling Tony"s would surely spark in-universe conversation. That said, Ironheart is taking a different path. More so than having Riri directly contribute to Iron Man"s legacy by carrying it on herself, the show is about her forging her own tale and becoming something iconic in her own right.
Ironheart Being Less About Iron Man Is A Good Thing For Riri Williams It Allows Riri To Become More Than Iron Man's Successor![]()
Custom image by Nicolas Ayala Despite how surprised I am that Iron Man will seemingly play no part at all in Ironheart"s MCU story, I think this is the right move. For one, it will only benefit Riri Williams as a character. Facing endless comparisons to Iron Man would only hinder her as her own person and hero. While I am sure some comparisons will still occur as is only natural given the similarities of the heroes, explicitly moving away from the idea of Iron Man"s legacy will allow Riri to become her own unique MCU character as opposed to Iron Man 2.0.
Moreover, this direction is simply more interesting. The MCU has already tackled the idea of Iron Man"s legacy via Spider-Man, especially in Spider-Man: Far From Home. Then there is a character like Rhodey/War Machine who was tied intrinsically to Tony Stark, meaning the latter"s legacy can still continue in the franchise without Riri. As the franchise finally moves beyond Tony Stark, be it with Spider-Man or Ironheart, giving heroes their own distinct feel is much more intriguing and even allows the exploration of things the Iron Man movies did not tackle, like a magic-vs-technology clash via Ironheart’s The Hood.
RDJ's Doom Role Would've Further Complicated Ironheart Replacing Iron Man The Face Of Tony Stark Is Returning, If Not Tony Himself![]()
The final element in the MCU that would complicate Ironheart replacing Iron Man, rendering the show"s direction an even better choice, is Robert Downey Jr."s return as Doctor Doom. The story of Avengers: Doomsday will take full advantage of the multiverse by having a man who looks very much like Tony Stark portray the iconic Marvel villain. If a show like Ironheart focused intently on celebrating Tony Stark"s legacy by involving Robert Downey Jr. months before his return as the biggest villain the franchise has ever adapted, this may cause conflicting feelings.
RDJ"s return as Doctor Doom has caused many debates and conversations as it is, but I feel this controversy is somewhat lessened by the distance between Tony Stark"s death and Avengers: Doomsday. This would not have been the case if a benevolent RDJ appeared in the MCU"s Ironheart as Tony, and could only have worked if Ironheart played a big role in the fight against Doom. Given that this seems unlikely, though, Ironheart"s decision to move away from Iron Man"s legacy is only further solidified as the right move.
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Like Follow Followed Ironheart Adventure Sci-Fi Superhero Drama Action Release Date June 24, 2025 Network CBS Showrunner Chinaka Hodge Directors Chinaka Hodge Writers Chinaka Hodge Cast See All ![]()
Dominique Thorne Riri Williams / Ironheart ![]()
Anthony Ramos Parker Robbins / The Hood ![]()
Lyric Ross Natalie Washington ![]()
Alden Ehrenreich Joe McGillicuddy
Franchise(s) Marvel Cinematic Universe Powered by![]()
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From looks at Ironheart"s main villain to Riri"s new suit of armor, the trailer promised a compelling story for the Disney+ show. Perhaps the most intriguing elements about Ironheart"s trailer, though, were the parts of her comic book story that seem absent from the MCU. The changes the MCU has made to Marvel characters have always been prevalent, yet most stories incorporate the more vital aspects of whoever is being adapted. In Ironheart"s case, her status as Iron Man"s MCU replacement is not going how I expected, though this may prove to be a good thing given RDJ"s Dr. Doom return.
The MCU Had To Change Ironheart's Iron Man Story Tony Stark Seems Unconnected To Riri Williams
The main way in which Ironheart"s MCU story seems unexpected to me is the lack of connections between Riri Williams and Tony Stark. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever tied Riri to the advanced technological nation of Wakanda, but I have been expecting Ironheart to tie closer to Iron Man since the show wrapped filming in 2022. Evidently, though, this will not be the case, with the MCU providing several reasons as to why this is different from the comic books.Tony Stark then fell into a coma after the second Marvel Comics Civil War, yet he continued to guide Riri using an AI recreation of himself...
In Marvel Comics, Riri Wiliams is endorsed by Tony Stark. After the latter sees the armor the former creates, he supports her transition into Ironheart personally, with Riri even fighting for Tony during the second Marvel Comics Civil War. Tony Stark fell into a coma after this war, yet he continued to guide Riri using an AI recreation of himself. The new hero then claimed the title Ironheart as a direct homage to Iron Man, vowing to continue Tony Stark"s legacy while he was unable to do so himself.
In the MCU, however, the diffrences between Iron Man and Ironheart are prevalent. As I have alluded to, it seems no links between Riri Williams and Tony Stark will be included in the show. The reason for this is obvious, given that Iron Man died in 2019"s Avengers: Endgame. That said, I still expected the AI element of Stark to be present in Ironheart, but it seems this is increasingly unlikely now. Thanks to Iron Man"s MCU death, all the links to Riri Williams have apparently been removed.
Ironheart Seemingly Isn't About Iron Man's Legacy Like I Expected Ironheart Will Forge Her Own Path Close Although I expected the AI element of Tony Stark guiding Riri to be part of Ironheart, I am not shocked the MCU show decided to move away from this plot point. After all, there was no connection between Tony and Riri in the former"s life, so why would there be after his death? Nonetheless, I still expected Ironheart to address the element of Tony Stark"s legacy in its story, but the show is moving in another direction, if the trailers are anything to go by.
Related Iron Man’s MCU Legacy Faces Its Biggest Challenge In 1 Upcoming MCU Release (& It’s Nothing To Do With Dr Doom) Iron Man"s MCU legacy might be in jeopardy in one upcoming Disney+ show released before Robert Downey Jr."s Doctor Doom debuts in Avengers: Doomsday.Posts 1 Even beyond the comic book connection between Riri and Tony, I figured the sheer importance Iron Man held in the MCU would raise some questions about legacy. Years after his death, people are still talking about Iron Man in the MCU, meaning a hero flying around with an iron suit on resembling Tony"s would surely spark in-universe conversation. That said, Ironheart is taking a different path. More so than having Riri directly contribute to Iron Man"s legacy by carrying it on herself, the show is about her forging her own tale and becoming something iconic in her own right.
Ironheart Being Less About Iron Man Is A Good Thing For Riri Williams It Allows Riri To Become More Than Iron Man's Successor
Custom image by Nicolas Ayala Despite how surprised I am that Iron Man will seemingly play no part at all in Ironheart"s MCU story, I think this is the right move. For one, it will only benefit Riri Williams as a character. Facing endless comparisons to Iron Man would only hinder her as her own person and hero. While I am sure some comparisons will still occur as is only natural given the similarities of the heroes, explicitly moving away from the idea of Iron Man"s legacy will allow Riri to become her own unique MCU character as opposed to Iron Man 2.0.Moreover, this direction is simply more interesting. The MCU has already tackled the idea of Iron Man"s legacy via Spider-Man, especially in Spider-Man: Far From Home. Then there is a character like Rhodey/War Machine who was tied intrinsically to Tony Stark, meaning the latter"s legacy can still continue in the franchise without Riri. As the franchise finally moves beyond Tony Stark, be it with Spider-Man or Ironheart, giving heroes their own distinct feel is much more intriguing and even allows the exploration of things the Iron Man movies did not tackle, like a magic-vs-technology clash via Ironheart’s The Hood.
RDJ's Doom Role Would've Further Complicated Ironheart Replacing Iron Man The Face Of Tony Stark Is Returning, If Not Tony Himself
The final element in the MCU that would complicate Ironheart replacing Iron Man, rendering the show"s direction an even better choice, is Robert Downey Jr."s return as Doctor Doom. The story of Avengers: Doomsday will take full advantage of the multiverse by having a man who looks very much like Tony Stark portray the iconic Marvel villain. If a show like Ironheart focused intently on celebrating Tony Stark"s legacy by involving Robert Downey Jr. months before his return as the biggest villain the franchise has ever adapted, this may cause conflicting feelings.RDJ"s return as Doctor Doom has caused many debates and conversations as it is, but I feel this controversy is somewhat lessened by the distance between Tony Stark"s death and Avengers: Doomsday. This would not have been the case if a benevolent RDJ appeared in the MCU"s Ironheart as Tony, and could only have worked if Ironheart played a big role in the fight against Doom. Given that this seems unlikely, though, Ironheart"s decision to move away from Iron Man"s legacy is only further solidified as the right move.
Like Follow Followed Ironheart Adventure Sci-Fi Superhero Drama Action Release Date June 24, 2025 Network CBS Showrunner Chinaka Hodge Directors Chinaka Hodge Writers Chinaka Hodge Cast See All 
Dominique Thorne Riri Williams / Ironheart 
Anthony Ramos Parker Robbins / The Hood 
Lyric Ross Natalie Washington 
Alden Ehrenreich Joe McGillicuddy Franchise(s) Marvel Cinematic Universe Powered by
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