Comic book fans will finally get to know a little more about Riri Williams in Marvel‘s new television series “Ironheart.”
Viewers will see plenty of Chicago scenes and talent in the show that premieres at 8 p.m. Tuesday on Disney+ and picks up where “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” left off.
The TV series takes place on the South Side — the production actually filmed several days here — and its director, Sam Bailey, grew up in Logan Square.
For the story, Bailey turned to Chicago sociologist, artist and poet Eve L. Ewing’s version of Ironheart. The character debuted in a 2016 comic, “Invincible Iron Man Vol. 3, No. 7,” by Brian Michael Bendis and Stefano Caselli.
But Ewing was the first author to give Ironheart a series of her own with “Ironheart Vol. 1” in 2018. Ewing’s take on Ironheart dives deeper into the pressures and cost of being a young Black genius, Bailey said.
“I just understood what it was like to be a young person in Chicago while you’re navigating grief and also having big dreams,” Bailey said. “It just felt really personal to me, and that’s why I wanted to do it.”
Bailey directed the first three episodes of the series, which will become available Tuesday night. The remaining three episodes will be available on the platform starting July 1.
She told the Chicago Sun-Times that Riri’s story is one she feels “aligned with.”
“Ironheart” tells the story of a brilliant teenager who has built a technologically advanced suit of armor inspired by Iron Man, aka Tony Stark (portrayed by Robert Downey Jr.).
Dominique Thorne reprises her role as 19-year-old Riri, first introduced to movie theater audiences in Ryan Coogler’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.”
The story picks up within days of the 2022 film’s ending. Saving the world alongside the Wakandans is tough work, but it’s not exactly lucrative.
At the start of the miniseries, Riri is still attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where the wunderkind began her studies at 15 years old.
To make some extra cash, she sells blueprints and tech to her peers, but MIT eventually finds out and expels her. She moves back in with her mom in Chicago and reconnects with her neighbors and friends, siblings Xavier “Xa” Washington (Matthew Elam) and Natalie Washington (Lyric Ross).
The series follows the superhero as she balances her struggles with grief and finding her way in the world. Like many 19-year-olds, Riri is ambitious, fiercely independent and wants to do things her way.
She gets caught up with the Humboldt Park-born Parker Robbins (Anthony Ramos), the leader of a motley crew of criminals. The ragtag bunch —which includes Chicago drag queen Shea Couleé— embarks on several elaborate heists to grow their power in the city.
Per the comics, Riri loses her stepfather and best friend Natalie in a shooting.
Chinaka Hodge, creator and head writer of the series, has a personal connection to Chicago.
“I wanted to honor some of what I experienced with Chicago with my grandma, and that’s baked right in,” she said.
Hodge said she finds Chicago to be “full of the hardest-working, most brilliant, most scrappy, most beautiful people on earth.”
Born and raised in Oakland, California, Hodge recalls visiting her grandmother, who lived in Kankakee and worked as a technologist. They’d visit Chicago and eat Italian food in the Loop. Both of Hodge’s parents are Northwestern University alumni, too.
Having spent some of her slam poetry career in Chicago with Young Chicago Authors’ Louder Than A Bomb and Brave New Voices, Hodge wanted to make sure the spirit of the city was felt in each episode.
“If I could have built in the flavor of hot Garrett [popcorn] melting in your mouth or Harold’s falling off the bone, I would have,” Hodge said.
While part of the series was shot in Chicago, it was mostly filmed in Atlanta. Still, in one scene, viewers will see the iconic Chicago Bucket Boys. In others, they’ll find familiar murals from Chicago artists like Hebru Brantley. And there are plenty of shots of the elevated CTA tracks downtown.
The show’s soundtrack also includes music from Chicago artists like Lupe Fiasco and Chaka Khan.
Hodge said she had the most fun recreating scenes directly from Ewing’s comics. And by working with Disney and Marvel Studios, they got to work with a “movie-sized budget” for each episode, she said.
“I think my challenge as someone adapting the story was to take some of what works very well in [the comics] … and then extrapolate what other stories might happen,” Hodge said. The goal was to show audiences a new side of Riri, not re-create the comics page by page.
This project was special for Hodge, especially as the mother of a 4-year-old girl.
“She will not know a world pre-‘Black Panther,’” Hodge said. “There will always be Shuri in her world. There will always be a T’Challa, and now there will always be an Ironheart.”
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with the correct spelling of Shea Couleé.
