Iron Man’s Female Successor Could Be Ironheart

By JIM PURCELL

Everyone knows and loves Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man. He's been a reliable draw and box office breaker for the MCU for nine movies now: "Iron Man," his cameo in "The Incredible Hulk," "Iron Man 2," "The Avengers: Age of Ultron," "Captain America: Civil War," "Spider-Man: Homecoming" and, of course, "Avengers: Infinity War."

   Downey has one more film on his contract, which is "Avengers: Endgame." And, that's all he's signed for. Downey has been playing the iron Avenger since 2008, 11 years ago and gosh only knows how many billions of dollars later for the franchise.

   Something that most people forget about Downey is that, born in 1965, he is 53 years old. That means he has been eligible to join AARP for the past three years. While age has not been a problem so far, it would no doubt start becoming an issue not too long from now. So, it isn't really a gamble for either Downey or the studio to part ways after a mega-successful relationship that has garnered acclaim for both actor and studio.

   But, what next?

   Regardless of who comes and goes, the fixture that is Iron Man is going to need to stay. There are all kinds of theories out there. Here is mine.

   Ironheart, a.k.a. Riri Williams, was born on the pages of Marvel in May 2016 within "Invincible Iron Man" Vol. 2, No. 7. Williams went on to become a full-fledged character a few issues later, in "Invincible Iron Man" Vol. 2, No. 9. But, what's the big deal about Wiliams?

   Forget about the fact that Williams is a black woman, which can bring new fans to the MCU. She is introduced as a 15-year-old engineering student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who lives with her mother and aunt. She ends up building her own design of Iron Man's suit with items she aquired at school.

   So, instead of another 'traditional' brilliant guy (e.g. Hank Pym, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner), the reality of life comes closer to the surface that, in Avengers world or any other, brilliance comes from all backgrounds. On top of that, Williams could bring a younger demographic to the Iron Man franchise, along with more diversity.

   On top of that, being 15 years old, age issues going into the future go away entirely. There are plenty of incredible actresses out there that could turn the next phase of Iron Man into a Golden Age as Williams.