Much like how we saw the succession of Captain America in The Falcon and the Winter Solider when Sam Wilson officially took on the Star-Spangled mantle, Ironheart will see the anticipated succession of Iron Man from Tony Stark to teen genius Riri Williams. After meeting the young prodigy in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, we’ll get to see her as a lead when Ironheart hits Disney+ sometime in the next year or so as one of Marvel’s many upcoming shows.
In anticipation of this exciting addition to the MCU, here are the actors who've been unveiled for the Ironheart cast.
Dominique Thorne
Dominique Throne will be our leading lady in Ironheart, taking on the role of Riri Williams. We got to know the character when Riri appeared in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Thorne’s prodigy is an extremely intelligent technology genius. In the comics, she decides to continue Tony Stark’s legacy after he ends up in a coma, and she is trained by an A.I. duplicate of the man behind Iron Man. While we don’t know if that will be her origin in the MCU, we do know Thorne's version learned from another young genius when she and Shuri, the princess and tech wiz of Wakanda, crossed paths.
Before joining Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Dominique Thorne had roles in the critically acclaimed films Judas and the Black Messiah, which also starred Black Panther’s Daniel Kaluuya, and If Beale Street Could Talk, which featured WandaVision and The Marvels star Teyonah Parris.
Anthony Ramos
While Anthony Ramos’ character in Ironheart has been kept fairly under wraps, we know a bit about Parker Robbins. In footage shown at D23, according to IGN, Ramos’ character was shown, and afterward, Kevin Feige and Ryan Coogler revealed that he was in fact The Hood, one of the great street-level villains in the world of Marvel.
As for the actor under the hood, Ramos’ stardom has been rising since he played John Laurens and Philip Hamilton in the smash Broadway hit Hamilton. His other major role was in the film adaptation of Lin Manuel Miranda’s first musical In The Heights, where he led the cast as Usnavi, and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, which was featured on the 2023 movie schedule.
Lyric Ross
Lyric Ross has been brought on to Ironheart to play Riri’s best friend, but sadly that’s really all we know about her character at the moment. The actress is best known for her work on the hit NBC drama This Is Us, where she played Déjà, the daughter Randall and Beth adopted when she was a teenager. Ross also led the cast of the stop-motion film Wendell & Wild, which also starred Black Panther’s Angela Bassett, as well as Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele.
Alden Ehrenreich
All we know about Alden Ehrenreich’s involvement in Ironheart is that he’ll play a key role. The actor joins the MCU after starring alongside the OG Iron Man himself, Robert Downey Jr., in the cast of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. Ehrenreich is arguably best known for playing a younger Han Solo in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Since then, he starred in the series Brave New World, and along with this MCU project, his 2023 schedule included Cocaine Bear and Fair Play.
Cree Summer
You may not recognize her at first glance, but you've likely heard Cree Summer’s voice before. She is an extremely successful voice actress, with over 300 credits to her name. She is the woman behind characters like Susie Carmichael in Rugrats and All Grown Up!, as well as Princess Kida in Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Witch Haggar and other characters in Voltron: Legendary Defender, and Nebula in the animated Guardians of the Galaxy series. Summer is also well known for her role as Freddie Brooks in the NBC sitcom A Different World, which was on in the ‘80s and ‘90s.
According to Deadline, Summer joins Ironheart in an unknown role. While her role is not confirmed, I personally would not be surprised if this successful voice actress acted as a J.A.R.V.I.S. or F.R.I.D.A.Y. equivalent in Riri’s suit.
Manny Montana
Deadline confirmed that Manny Montana would be joining the cast of Ironheart in an unknown role. The actor is likely best known for his role as Rio in the Good Girls cast. He has also appeared in other major shows, including Graceland, Westworld, Rosewood and Mission Force One.
Shakira Barrera
Shakira Barrera will be joining the Ironheart cast in a recurring role, according to Deadline. The actress was part of the iconic GLOW cast as Yolanda Rivas. The show was tragically canceled by Netflix unexpectedly, but Barrera has moved on to other projects. The actress has consistently worked and appeared in small roles on various shows like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and Shameless. Along with Ironheart, she also has a film called Don’t Open the Door in the works.
Regan Aliyah
Ironheart will be Regan Aliyah’s biggest role to date. Deadline confirmed she would be playing an unknown role in the upcoming Marvel series. Along with acting, Aliyah is also a rapper with multiple songs, including “BROWS” and “What's Next.” When the news was announced that she was cast, the actress posted on her Instagram about her excitement, saying “manifestation is a wild thing innit.”
Zoe Terakes
Zoe Terakes has been cast in a key, but not confirmed, role, according to Deadline. You may recognize them from when they starred alongside Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy, Michael Shannon and Luke Evans in the cast of Nine Perfect Strangers. They also had roles in Wentworth, Janet King, Unravelling and Talk to Me.
Shea Couleé
Shea Couleé is an iconic drag queen known for being on RuPaul’s Drag Race and RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. She placed in the top four on her first season of Drag Race, then won All Stars in 2020 and then competed again on the 2022 season of All Stars. Along with the popular show, she is also a musician with songs like “Let Go” and “Your Name.”
She will join the Ironheart cast as an unknown character according to Deadline, but I’m sure she will be fierce in whatever role that is.
Harper Anthony
Harper Anthony is a newcomer to acting, at only 9 years old, The Wrap reported that he will appear in Ironheart in an undisclosed role. The young actor has appeared in independent projects like Vulture City and City of Vultures, and he had a small role on the NBC hit Chicago Med.
Paul Calderon
Paul Calderon joins the Ironheart cast in an unknown role, according to Deadline. The actor from Puerto Rico is known for his roles in films from the ‘90s like Pulp Fiction, Four Rooms and King of New York. He has also had recurring roles on many shows, including Boardwalk Empire, Fear the Walking Dead and Bosch.
Sonia Denis
Sonia Denis is a writer, stand-up comedian, and actress. She will be joining Ironheart in an unknown role, according to Variety. Before this MCU project, she had roles in Set It Up and the animated series BoJack Horseman. She was a writer on the popular comedy series A Black Lady Sketch Show, and her stand-up routines have been aired on Comedy Central.
While many of these characters are still shrouded in secrecy, the cast alone makes me extremely excited for Ironheart. As we wait for this exciting show, you can check out Marvel’s upcoming movies in the meantime. Also, you can stream the original three Iron Man movies, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and the rest of the Marvel movies in order, with a Disney+ subscription.
