A concept artist for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever gave fans a detailed look at the work that went into creating the noteworthy suit for Ironheart in the Marvel Studios sequel.
Concept artist Phil Saunders posted a set of videos on Instagram of the final model for Riri Williams/Ironheart's suit used in Wakanda Forever. Saunders revealed that the color for the Ironheart suit began as a copper tone, though it inevitably ended up being red "as an homage to both Tony Stark and Riri’s father’s beloved red-and-black Barracuda." He also stressed the importance of working on the Ironheart design given his Afro-Caribbean descent. "I wanted to design a suit that wasn’t a copycat piece of Stark tech," he said. "Something that my daughters and cousins could look at and immediately know that a black woman was piloting."
Saunders also said there are design elements often taken for granted when doing concept art, including Euro and male-specific aspects. "It’s a common precept that as artists we tend to draw ourselves in our figures," Saunders said. "So if Riri were designing this, how would she have idealized herself? Concept Design requires a bit of method acting, so as Riri this time, this is my answer to that question." Saunders is known for designing Iron Man suits in Marvel movies and has worked on concept designs for films like Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: No Way Home and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Wakanda Forever Features Ironheart Mark I and II
Riri Williams/Ironheart made her live-action debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Wakanda Forever, portrayed by Dominique Thorne. The Black Panther sequel featured two versions of her superhero suit: the Mark I and Mark II. In a recent interview, Thorne explained that her Ironheart suit weighed almost over 50 pounds.
"Unlike some of the other suits that may be added in later with visual effects, the Mark I was all practical," she said. "To get to feel the weight of that on my body and just understand how it moves -- you almost want to say it’s clunky, but when you have it on, you realize, 'Oh, this is actually such a smart build.'"
Created by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato, Ironheart made her Marvel Comics debut in 2016's Invincible Iron Man Vol. 2 #7. A teenage genius and MIT student, Riri Williams goes on to meet Tony Stark who subsequently endorses her to become a superhero. Thorne will reprise her Wakanda Forever role for the upcoming Disney+ show, Ironheart, which is set for a late 2023 release as part of the MCU's Phase Five. The Ironheart series will consist of six episodes and feature Anthony Ramos as Parker Robbins/The Hood. The cast also includes Lyric Ross, who stars as Riri Williams' best friend.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is now in theaters.
Source: Instagram