Marvel Studios has been introducing a lot of new characters to the audiences over the last year. This includes the likes of Monica Rambeau to Kate Bishop and now Moon Knight's many personalities. The trend is set to keep going with another big character set to make their grand entrance later this year in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever: Riri Williams. The character is played by Dominique Thorne and will show up on the movie side of the MCU before debuting in her own Disney+ series.
Riri first showed up in the comics back in 2016, where her genius level of intelligence led to her building her own Iron Man armor in the wake of Tony Stark going into a coma. So, naturally, she starts fighting crime in his stead—Riri even gets a Stark-based AI system in her suit.
Details on her first appearance in the Black Panther sequel are sparse. At the least, it has been rumored that she will be suiting up at some point in the film. One would have to assume she'll get a sizable role, seeing as Riri will be spinning off into her own series.
As filming for Ironheart starts to inch closer, more cast members habe started to be announced. Now, fans can add another name to the list.
Ironheart Gets a New Cast Member
The Wrap reported that Harper Anthony has joined Marvel Studios' Ironheart. As per the MCU way, details about his role are being kept under wraps. Anthony is relatively new to the acting world, with his biggest role being a guest spot on Chicago Med in 2021.
Ironheart will follow Dominque Thorne's Riri Williams as she builds her own suit of Iron Man armor and faces the issues that tend to pop up when one joins the superhero world. William will also be joined by Anthony Ramos, who is rumored to be a villain in the series.
Ironheart Starts Rounding Out Its Cast
While no details were immediately available on his role, an easy guess would be that Anthony would be playing a younger brother to Dominque Thorne's Riri Williams. That wouldn't be accurate to the source material, but it's a change Marvel Studios likely wouldn't hesitate to make.
On a similar note, his character could have a similar familial connection to Anthony Ramos' character in the series. Since the identity of who Ramos is playing remains under wraps, it's hard to make any more detailed guesses.
Marvel Studios has been casting more and more unknowns recently, with Alaqua Cox' Echo and Iman Vellani's Ms. Marvel being just two examples. Practices like that are a sign of extreme confidence in an actor; if MCU fans have learned anything, it's to trust the casting choices made by its all-star casting director Sarah Finn.
Ironheart is set to start production later this year, with a probable release at some point in 2023.
