Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has officially introduced the new Iron Man to the MCU on the big screen. The key character is the young prodigy Riri Williams, played by Dominique Thorne, who is the first to create powerful armor that rivals Tony Stark’s designs to assist Wakanda in the battle against Talokan.
Riri Williams is one of the upcoming superheroes in the Marvel universe, simultaneously representing the “next generation” of the MCU. The story of this character will be explored further in the animated series Ironheart, set to debut on Disney+ in the fall of 2023.
However, it is likely that Riri Williams will hold an even more significant role, directly related to the future of the multiverse that Marvel Studios is actively developing in recent years. There are theories suggesting that this new Iron Man is actually a variant of Kang the Conqueror, the next major antagonist in the MCU.
Kang Variants in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Kang and his variants are among the first to discover the existence of the multiverse in Phase 4. They have been searching for connections with one another while exchanging knowledge and technology to develop their own realities. However, not all variants of this character are benevolent, and a multiversal war has broken out among all variants of Kang to find the strongest timeline where they can exist.
After all, He Who Remains, one of Kang’s variants, is the one who secured victory and maintained control over multiple realities in a single timeline – known as the Sacred Timeline. He Who Remains established the Time Variance Authority (TVA), which operates outside of space and time, with the sole mission of preventing branching timelines from emerging. In other words, this variant has used the TVA to enforce order in the Marvel multiverse over the years and only maintains the existence of a single reality.
However, in the final episode of Season 1 of Loki, He Who Remains was killed by Sylvie, a variant of Loki, which released the multiverse and set the stage for many future films such as Spider-Man: No Way Home or Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Of course, other variants of He Who Remains are also now officially free, one of which is Kang the Conqueror – the character that will appear in the upcoming blockbuster Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania on February 17, 2023.
Ironheart Could Be a Variant of Kang
After the multiverse was “opened,” the question arises about how many variants of He Who Remains Marvel Studios will explore. Besides Kang the Conqueror, will there be other versions of this character appearing in the MCU? A theory on Reddit suggests that Marvel may combine Riri Williams/Ironheart with Nathaniel Richards/Iron Lad, signifying that the new Iron Man could indeed be a variant of Kang in this cinematic universe.
In the comic lore, Nathaniel Richards once broke away from his own timeline and inadvertently traveled back to the past. After realizing that his true self would become a living embodiment in the future, Nathaniel decided to change his fate, becoming the superhero Iron Lad and even forming the Young Avengers team.
After 15 years of development, Marvel Studios has often shifted the narrative of this character to suit another character in its cinematic universe. Therefore, the theory of connecting Ironheart with Iron Lad is entirely plausible, especially as Phase 5 of the MCU will officially delve deeper into stories related to Kang the Conqueror.
In reality, these two superheroes could share a lot of similarities. They both utilize advanced technology similar to Tony Stark to create powerful suits with combat capabilities, while also facing off against each other. Additionally, combining these two characters could help Marvel Studios streamline the narrative, finding a new way to introduce young heroes without relying too heavily on the legacy of Iron Man, who has already had many potential successors like Morgan Stark (Tony and Pepper Potts’s daughter), Harley Keener (the young boy who helped Tony in Iron Man 3), James Rhodes (Tony’s best friend and also the current War Machine), or even “Spider-Man” Peter Parker.
The gender differences between Riri Williams and Nathaniel Richards are also not a significant issue for Marvel Studios, as they have always been open to change and creativity to adapt to the evolving landscape of the MCU. Previously, Marvel has introduced a female variant of Loki (Sylvie) and altered the gender of three main characters in Eternals, including Makkari, Sprite, and Ajak. There are even hints that the studio may introduce a female variant of Wade Wilson, Lady Deadpool, onto the big screen in the future, as they seek to integrate female characters more prominently into the MCU.
Ironheart Could Play a Key Role in Iron Lad’s Young Avengers
Alongside the development of narratives related to the multiverse, Marvel Studios is also preparing for a longer-term future, featuring younger superheroes. Phase 4 of the MCU has clearly not shied away from indicating a special interest in the Young Avengers coming to the forefront soon, with members like Riri Williams (Ironheart), Kate Bishop (Hawkeye), America Chavez, Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel), Billy and Tommy Maximoff, or even Hulk’s son, Skaar.
As mentioned earlier, in the source material, Nathaniel Richards is the one who founded the Young Avengers, often serving as the leader of this team. Given that the combat roles and capabilities of Nathaniel and Riri Williams are quite similar, this duo could potentially “balance each other out” if they both join the Young Avengers. This narrative could easily be resolved by intertwining the story arcs of Ironheart and Iron Lad, while also helping Marvel streamline its film production and focus more on the quality of each project.
Moreover, if Riri Williams becomes the founder of the Young Avengers, this team could potentially make a significant appearance on the big screen sooner than audiences might expect. The animated series dedicated to Ironheart will debut this year, while Phase 6 of the MCU (from 2024 to 2026) still has not revealed many upcoming projects. One of these could be Young Avengers, as Marvel Studios has already laid the groundwork for this team.
Ironheart as a Variant of Kang Could Be a Necessary Catalyst for the MCU
In early 2025, Marvel Studios is set to release the blockbuster Fantastic Four to kick off Phase 6 of the MCU. With the introduction of Mr. Fantastic/Reed Richards, son of Nathaniel Richards, audiences are eagerly anticipating a standalone film for Iron Lad, instead of merging this character with another superhero.
However, the idea of making Ironheart a variant of Kang could serve as a crucial catalyst for the MCU, helping to resolve many issues and better prepare for the upcoming multiverse stories. Riri Williams embodies a genius prodigy, capable of easily integrating and utilizing advanced technologies from Wakanda in a short time, while also creating numerous useful devices. This detail could easily explain how Riri could be a variant of Kang – still a genius but a prodigy developing technology to traverse time.
Ultimately, this could not only create one of the largest catalysts for the next phase of the MCU but also help upcoming Marvel Studios projects become more interconnected, enriching the narratives behind the multiverse stories. Furthermore, the significance of Ironheart will be elevated, and this character could very well become a central figure in the MCU in the future, much like how Marvel previously did with Iron Man over a decade ago.
Source: Marvel Studios, ScreenRant
