Stark’s genius comic book protege gets a real-life co-sign.
When it comes to Robert Downey Jr, the level of cool he exuded before and prior to his signature role as Tony Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has pushed him through the stratosphere on the cool on the barometer of cool.
Recently, Tony Stark bit the big one at the culmination Avengers: Endgame. Thus, he’s not going to be in the incoming Marvel offerings. However, that doesn’t mean he’s still not thinking about ways Stark can influence the MCU moving forward.
This week Marvel Comics writer Eve L. Ewing shared on Twitter that Downey Jr is a big-time advocate for Ironheart, the hero Ewing and Brian Michael Bendis created, to be included in the MCU while he was accepting the Gene Siskel Film Center’s top prize at its Renaissance gala in Chicago.
For the comic book ignorant, Ironheart aka Riri Williams is a 15-year-old techno-prodigy who is kicked out of M.I.T. after stealing parts to build her own armor in the image of her hero, Tony Stark.
Stark mentors Williams via a fully functional artificial intelligence programmed with the memories, personality, and intelligence of the original. With the assistance of hologram Starks, Riri creates her own version of the Iron Man armor and calls herself Iron Heart.
“The real story here is that Robert Downey Jr. said publicly in a room full of people that Ironheart should be in the MCU,” wrote Ewing, who created the Ironheart superhero in 2015 with fellow writers Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato. “I went straight back to the press area afterward and was like YOU ALL HEARD IT, WRITE THAT DOWN.”
According to Indiewire, a script for an Ironheart movie featuring Tony Stark as her mentor actually made the 2018 Black List of scripts.
Actress Mindy Kaling recently revealed that she was in talks with Marvel Studios to bring the new Ms. Marvel to the MCU while studio president Kevin Feige has been consistent in calling for increased inclusivity and representation in the next phase of films.
What that means to me is there’s a very real chance that the MCU will be black, browner and more feminine and some heavy hitters are down for the cause. Can’t wait to see what they come up with!
