Ironheart Trailer: Riri Williams Tests Her Genius Against The Hood

Ryan Coogler is on a roll. Having recently scored a box office hit with his latest film, Sinners, the award-winning director is not going to rest on his laurels for long. Coogler will soon join the Marvel team, working as a showrunner on their limited series Ironheart.

Marvel has just released a stylish new trailer for the show, building up hype for its upcoming June 2025 release.

Marvel’s Ironheart is a six-episode series set in the MCU. Starring Dominique Thorne as the titular character, the show will follow Riri Williams, a teen technology wunderkind and protégé of Tony Stark from the original comics. Ironheart will serve as the last television series in the MCU’s Phase Five.

Ironheart was first announced in December 2020, with a projected release in 2023. The following year, however, Marvel reevaluated its long-term strategy, deciding to produce less content overall per year. The company faced some accusations of oversaturating the market at the time, and its decision to delay Ironheart was one of the first major projects to be moved, now to premiere this summer. During the 2024 D23 convention, Marvel first unveiled footage of the series, which was described as “a crime show with an Iron Man twist at the center.” This suggests that the show will be slightly more grounded and grim than some of the MCU’s other recent series.

Ironheart’s protagonist Riri Williams had her live-action debut in 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. During that movie, she is entangled in a conflict with Namor and his army of blue-skinned soldiers after inventing a vibranium detector while attending MIT. She soon bonds with Shuri over their shared love of science, and during the movie, she builds her armored suit, one that echoes that of Iron Man’s, to help Wakanda fight off the invaders. By the end of the film, with Wakanda at peace, she is forced to leave the suit with the Wakandans when she returns to MIT.

Ironheart: Technology vs. Magic

Ironheart picks up soon after the events of Wakanda Forever. The official synopsis states: “Set after the events of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Ironheart pits technology against magic when Riri—determined to make her mark on the world—returns to her hometown of Chicago. Her unique take on building iron suits is brilliant, but in pursuit of her ambitions, she finds herself wrapped up with the mysterious yet charming Parker Robbins, aka ‘The Hood’ (Anthony Ramos).”

In addition to Thorne and Ramos, the series’ ensemble cast also includes Lyric Ross (Natalie Washington), Alden Ehrenreich (Joe McGillicuddy), Manny Montana (Cousin John), Matthew Elam (Xavier Washington), and Anji White (Riri’s mother, Ronnie). Shea Couleé will appear as Slug. The MCU is also returning to the series in the form of Jim Rash, playing the dean of MIT, a character he has previously portrayed in Marvel movies since 2016’s Captain America: Civil War. Sacha Baron Cohen is also set to appear on Ironheart, though Marvel has so far kept his character a secret.

Notably, the new trailer for the show dives immediately into the action. It begins with Riri entering a closed-up pizza restaurant, only to realize that the elevator transporting her has been locked with her inside. The doors open to reveal that she is in a poison-filled elevator, with only two minutes to escape. The whole ordeal, it turns out, is an interview of sorts, concocted by The Hood. He makes this clear over the intercom to Riri, who is almost out of time and on the verge of suffocating, by saying, “If you don’t hack into this box mounted on the floor, containing a gas mask, you will suffocate.” Riri, however, is not having it, and instead of doing as he says, she pulls off a MacGyver-style stunt to escape the elevator instead.

The Hood is impressed with Riri’s wits and offers her a chance to work with him, doing “some real business,” meaning illegal stuff. Riri, after making sure he is being serious, quickly accepts his offer, eager to make her iron suit that is both useful and “iconic.” Riri’s friends seem wary about her decision, particularly Natalie, her closest friend in the series. The Hood also makes it clear that Riri is more than welcome to be part of the crew, but is free to back out if she does not like what she sees. Natalie gives her some good advice when she cautions Riri about The Hood, to which he fires back at her and Riri, “Anyone who has ever accomplished anything iconic in life has had to do some questionable things to get it done.”

It appears, then, that Ironheart will focus on the cost of success, particularly for someone as capable as Riri Williams. After all, the question is: just how far is she willing to go?

Marvel has stated that the first three episodes of Ironheart will debut on Disney+ on June 24, 2025, with new episodes arriving every subsequent week. While no second season has been announced, it is not out of the question that the first season of Ironheart does particularly well. In the meantime, fans can enjoy this preview of the series from the trailer and a newly released behind-the-scenes featurette.