We already have a long list of reasons to be excited about Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but the MCU debut of Dominique Thorne as Riri Williams is definitely high up on that. Her character looks set to have a bright future in this shared world, with Disney+ TV series Ironheart set to debut next year.
We've seen Ironheart's two armours in promo art and in action figure form, but a new international promo for the Black Panther sequel finally shows both suits in live-action.
The first was clearly cobbled together by Riri, while the second definitely seems to have a Wakandan influence. What leads to her changing amours in Ironheart remains to be seen, though it does appear as if she goes through something of a "War Machine" phase in the show.
During a recent interview with io9, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever producer Nate Moore addressed the decision to introduce Riri in this movie. "We love the idea of of her as a African American woman in America, sort of encountering Wakanda. She has a different point of view than Killmonger but there’s a similar notion of seeing something that maybe had been lost."
"And we love the idea of a woman who is potentially as smart as Shuri, but has such a different experience with that intelligence. And I think that made her kind of undeniable as part of the fabric of the movie."
"Her adventure in this movie, and coming out on the other end of it with her experiences, really motivates her to become more of a hero because of what she’s seen," Moore continued. "But she’s going to find out in the show, not to spoil anything, that that’s easier to do in Wakanda with Wakanda behind you then it is as a now 20, 21-year-old student who goes back to MIT."
Check out this new Black Panther: Wakanda Forever TV spot below!
In Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M’Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje (including Florence Kasumba) fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T’Challa’s death.
As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda. Introducing Tenoch Huerta as Namor, king of Talokan, the film also stars Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Mabel Cadena and Alex Livinalli.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, directed by Ryan Coogler, opens in theaters on November 11.