CHICAGO — Not only do Chicagoans have a new hometown pope to celebrate, but with the release of “Ironheart,” they’ll also have a Chicago-based superhero to root for — one who proudly represents the South Side.
Created by Chinaka Hodge, set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and taking place after the 2022 film “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” the six-episode Disney+ series follows Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), a genius inventor who creates a suit of armor similar to Tony Stark’s Iron Man suits.
The first three episodes of “Ironheart” premiere on Disney+ Tuesday, with one new episode to be released weekly afterward.
Marvel CEO Kevin Feige first announced “Ironheart” in 2020, leaving many fans to wonder about the delay in releasing the new superhero series. Reel Chicago reported that filming on “Ironheart” wrapped in November 2022.
At the start of the series, viewers meet Williams after she’s expelled from MIT and returns home to Chicago. The rest of the series is set in the Windy City as Riri struggles to pick up the literal and figurative pieces of her work and life, all while navigating a mysterious supernatural threat in the form of the Humboldt Park-raised Parker Robbins (Anthony Ramos), leader of a band of misfits who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty in exposing the secrets of Chicago’s most wealthy and philanthropic.
From establishing shots of the “L” (try and catch how many different lines are represented), Museum Campus and nighttime views of DuSable Lake Shore Drive, to the presence of Stan’s Donuts, the show is a treasure trove of Chicago locations that even tourists will recognize — yet certain settings may hold deeper significance for locals familiar with the city’s history.
For the “Ironheart” team, it was never a question that the show would be filmed in Chicago proper, with a few scenes also being shot in Atlanta. The multimedia production company, Proximity Media — founded by Ryan Coogler, Zinzi Coogler and Sev Ohanian — produced “Ironheart” along with projects like “Sinners” and “Judas and the Black Messiah,” and the reach of the show’s locations are as wide as they are deep.
“We cover some good ground in the city,” Ohanian told Block Club.
In one scene, after Williams is expelled, she takes her makeshift armored suit and flies back to Chicago. Her suit later malfunctions and she crashes near her home on the South Side.
“We shot that on 75th Street with some real businesses right there,” said Ohanian, who was present for the entire shoot in Chicago. “It was fun because Dominique was wearing pieces of an iron suit and walking down the street with people seeing her. I think that tells you right away that the show will feel a bit different.”
For Thorne, who portrays Riri, that walk (or rather “flight”) of shame also holds significance because, in Riri’s odyssey back, viewers see famous Chicago landmarks, from Navy Pier to DuSable Bridge, which spoke to her love for Chicago as a city of rich architectural history.
“I’m a big architecture nerd and they always say Chicago is the most architecturally diverse city in America. … I do the architecture tour every time I come,” Thorne told Block Club. “Chicago was also the first city I’ve been to that made me — a young girl from Brooklyn, New York — realize that a city could be clean.”
Speaking to the locations featured in the show, due to the work of Chicago-based location manager Natasha Parker, the creative team said they felt they had the freedom to be specific with the places they set to ground the story.
“Those are all the spaces and landmarks that contribute to the vibrancy of the city,” Zinzi Coogler told Block Club. “It was almost criminal how much fun we were having picking where we would go. We were just constantly upping where we started with some locations and where we ultimately landed. But there’s no shortage of incredible spaces to base the story in.”
“My intention and process around including notable Chicago personalities and landmarks in our show was to make the show feel as much like Chicago as possible,” said show creator Chinaka Hodge. “When we went on location to Chicago, we made sure to shout out landmarks like Stan’s Donuts, the Museum of Science & Industry. We really had a wonderful time — the more we chose authentic places in and around the South Side of Chicago, in and around downtown Chicago and the loop, the more the show actually came to life. So it was a thoughtful choice to add these things in: You have to go to the places that make Chicago feel real.”
Regarding Stan’s Donuts, Ohanian joked, “We had to partake in what they offered … obviously in the name of research for the show.”
Capturing Riri’s Voice
In addition to reading all the “Ironheart” comics she could get her hands on, Thorne knew that she wanted to strive for authenticity, not caricature, when portraying a young Black girl from the South Side.
One of the first things she tried to nail was the Chicago accent.
“I watched a lot of Chicago YouTube girlies doing their vlogs, going to the mall or doing their makeup,” Thorne shared. “I listened to a lot of interviews of Chicago rapper Queen Key as well … I also listened to Black female Chicago professors … I wanted to hear a range of black women from Chicago and think about how their experiences affect their dialect and how that, in turn, could affect Riri.”
Thorne also wanted to perfect the accent to show the familiarity the character felt once she was back at home versus the ways her institution may not have been as welcoming.
“Riri spent a significant amount of her time at MIT. I’m sure that there are bits and pieces of her that she might lean into for different moments, and so what does it mean? How does she sound? Does she sound any different when she’s at school than when she goes back home in Chicago and she’s with her mom and her friends? That’s something I wanted to explore,” Thorne said.
Eve L. Ewing’s Element Of Reinvention
Although the Ironheart character was first introduced to Marvel Comics through writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Mike Deodato Jr., it was writer, poet and UChicago scholar Eve L. Ewing’s run on Ironheart in 2018 with the character’s first solo comic (“Ironheart” #1) that popularized the character.
Ewing served as a consulting producer on the show, which meant not only did she read early scripts, but she also gave notes and comments to ensure the show’s presentation of Chicago’s geography was accurate.
“As Chicagoans, we’re very particular about the little details … we’re very quick to say, ‘Oh you wouldn’t be able to see the Hancock building from that train station,’” Ewing told Block Club. “I read through the scripts with a Chicagoan’s eye of geography … I’m lucky that through a twist of fate, [show creator] Chinaka Hodge is a friend of mine and so there were times she would text me about Chicago-specific elements of the script that I could offer expertise on.”
There’s a parallel to be made between the ways Ewing’s run on Riri Williams reinvented the character and the ways the Ironheart team had to honor the portrayal of the character in 2022’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” while crafting something new and fresh.
For Ewing, that element of reinvention while honoring the past is not only endemic to the character but also something distinctly Chicagoan.
“What I love about comics, which I think for some people can be a frustration, is you’re playing in a sandbox with your action figures with a whole bunch of other nerds,” Ewing said. “Chicago, due to our improv storytelling tradition, has that famous saying of ‘yes and.’
“And frankly, for a writer, it’s nice to start with some material that’s already present and to say, ‘OK, where can I go with this?’”
A New Chicago Superhero
Though Chicago is no stranger to being featured in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, such as in episodes of “Loki” and “Moon Knight,” “Ironheart” is one of the few that truly brings Chicago to the forefront.
In the film’s opening after Williams crashes, a biker angrily swerves past her, not paying any mind that a woman in a metal suit just fell out of the sky. In the next scene, Williams is helped by a young boy (Harper Anthony) in her neighborhood to help her carry her broken suit back to her place where she’s embraced by her mother (Anji White); it’s a sign of how the Midwest, and Chicago in particular, can humble and hold you all at once.
While the show does not shy away from the violence of the city and its difficulties, it’s also a place of vibrance. Showcasing Chicago’s dynamism was something both Ewing and Coogler focused on in the comics and in the series, respectively.
“It’s complicated because obviously, our city does experience a lot of violence, just like all of this country experiences. It is a part of who we are, and it is not all that we are,” Ewing said. “Riri has also lost loved ones to gun violence, in the comics, [and] it was important for me to show that that’s something that she works through in the context of community.”
Zinzi Coogler said she was grateful for the show being able to showcase Chicago’s personality and history of vibrancy and endurance.
“I still have a lot of family in Chicago. I’ve always been drawn to my family there and my experiences there,” she said. “And with that, I’ve just learned that there’s such an intense sense of pride and community that exists for the people of Chicago. It’s a city that has contributed and infused so much influence to the arts, music, fashion, architecture and culture.
“It’s a gift to watch Williams navigate her big ambitions and make do with the limited resources that she has being back and home in her hometown … there’s beauty and resilience to this city.”
While it remains to be seen how Marvel might utilize Chicago after “Ironheart,” comic fans can hold hope that Ewing shows no signs of slowing down her shout-outs to the city in her comics.
“I’m working on a series called ‘Exceptional X-Men,’” Ewing said. “Kitty Pryde lives in Bridgeport, so I’m often in Bridgeport taking pictures for reference for the comic. Trista Marshall is another X-Men character who lives in North Lawndale. So much of the Marvel Universe has taken place in New York … there’s a Spider-Man from Queens and a Spider-Man in Brooklyn … so now we have an X-Men member from [the West Side] and the Southwest Side.”
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