In a few days, Marvel will release its new series on Disney+. After the release of Daredevil: Born Again, a critical and commercial success, Ironheart doesn't seem to be generating the same level of excitement. While the heroine was already introduced to viewers with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which she intends to follow in the footsteps of Iron Man, Chinaka Hodge's creation could have difficulty finding its audience. There's a good reason for that...
Indeed, Ironheart arrives a few months after the release of series and films that benefited from the House of Ideas' change of strategy. Like Captain America: Brave New World, the series starring Dominique Thorne is the last relic of a complicated period for the Disney subsidiary. What happened?
In 2023, Marvel must face the facts. The post-Endgame era is a failure, with the exception of a few resounding successes, its cinematic and television universe no longer captivates in the same way. Films like Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and The Marvels floundered at the global box office and were largely disowned by a portion of the public. On the small screen, the situation is no more encouraging with the consecutive failures of Miss Marvel, She-Hulk and Secret Invasion.
Change of approach
During his traditional writing retreat, Kevin Feige thus enacted a change of strategy in cinemas and on Disney+. Many projects have been restarted from scratch, starting with Daredevil: Born Again. The writers have been fired and a rewrite has been implemented. A showrunner has been hired: Dario Scadarpane. Until now, Disney+ had been without this crucial role in the process of creating a series for the television industry. The return of Matt Murdock benefited from the expertise of a true leader, who ensured good collaboration between the writing teams and directors. At the same time, Disney+ was abandoning the highly codified format of its series. From now on, Marvel productions on the small screen will have to be satisfied with more than just six short episodes. A welcome change, as most of them resembled films cut into several parts rather than real television products. Similarly, Marvel now offers itself the possibility of developing multiple seasons of its hits.
Finally, Marvel Television was rising from the ashes. The company, integrated into Marvel Studios in 2019, now aims to produce series that can be watched by anyone; the links with the cinematic universe have been reduced to nothing. In May 2024, Brad Winderbaum, head of television, explained:
And what about Ironheart then?
The series, whose development began in 2022, is thus part of the Old World of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It does not have a showrunner, but a creator and writers. Similarly, it is closely linked to several films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever first and foremost. It was in Ryan Coogler's film that the character played by Dominique Thorne made her first appearance. Its first season consists of six episodes. It should also be remembered that it has been postponed numerous times; it was supposed to hit our screens in 2023. Unlike Daredevil: Born Again, which saw its filming interrupted by the actors' and writers' strike, it was its post-production phase that was impacted.
It's difficult to know at this time if these delays have allowed Disney and Marvel to adjust the series to their new ambitions, but it seems that the House of Ideas does not want to dwell on this chapter of its history. The first three episodes will be available on day one before the series adopts a rhythm of one chapter per week. Four weeks of presence in all, Disney+ seems to want to get things over with before preparing for the arrival of more ambitious projects?
Answer on June 24 on the American platform. As a reminder, the series follows Riri Williams, a young robotics genius, who has developed a suit similar to Tony Stark's. As an antagonist emerges from the shadows, she will have to do everything in her power to prevent him from carrying out his plan. Dominique Thorne will star opposite Anthony Ramos (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts) and Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story).
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