Summary
Fans will see Dominique Thorne take up the role of Riri Williams once again in the upcoming Disney Plus miniseriesIronheart. Also joining the series are notable talents such as Alden Ehrenreich, Anthony Ramos, Harper Anthony, Manny Montana, and Shea Couleé, but their roles haven’t been disclosed just yet. However, set photos make it a little obvious who’s playing who and there are some studio confirmations.
Fans first saw Dominique Thorne don the Ironheart suit inBlack Panther 2: Wakanda Foreveralong with Namor’s live-action debut. Now she gets a story of her own where fans expect her to take on The Hood and possibly the big red guy himself, Mephisto. In comic book terms, The Hood is a relatively new character, but he quickly raised the ranks of villainhood under the guidance of some prolific comic book writers. He even has hisownMarvel Snapcard. His addition to the MCU could mean big things for him and the supernatural community as a whole.
Who is The Hood in Marvel Comics?
Writer Brian K. Vaughan created The Hood character in 2002, but he came to prominence under the penmanship of the iconic Brian Michael Bendis who made The Hood an Avenger-level threat. The Hood is a villain in the Marvel Universe who started out as a petty criminal named Parker Robbins. A life of crime was always in Parker’s path growing up, unfortunately. His dad maintained a workingrelationship with Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin, and when his father died, Parker found that it was up to him to care for his mentally ill mother. Crime felt like the only option for the young Parker Robbins.
While robbing a warehouse full of valuables, Parker found himself in the middle of a demonic summoning ritual and face-to-face with a Nistani demon. He shot and killed the demon out of fear and instinctively stole its boots and cloak. It didn’t take long for Parker to learn that there was more to the boots and cloak than met the eye and the demon probably didn’t get them from Forever 21. While running away from a hostile gang, he started running in mid-air. Eventually, he discovers the cloak grants him invisibility for as long as he holds his breath.
With this significant upgrade in power, Parker gradually envelopes himself deeper in the criminalunderbelly of the Marvel Universe. Parker eventually forms his own crime syndicate and positions himself as the new Kingpin in New York City.
Who is Playing The Hood in Ironheart?
The Hood debuting in the MCU adds to the number of magic users in the universe as he has limited knowledge of the mystic arts, joining the likes of Doctor Strange, Wanda Maximoff, and Wong. At the D23 Expo in 2022, Marvel confirmed that Anthony Ramos will be taking up the role of Parker Robbins/The Hood.Marvel’s Ironheartwon’t be Ramos' first big blockbuster experience as he’s found himself leading the way inbig hits such asTransformers: Rise of the Beasts,In the Heights, andHamilton.
It’s unknown what kind of role -besides a villainous one- Ramos' The Hood will play inIronheart. Riri and Parker didn’t interact much, if at all, in the comics. However, Parker had plenty of interaction with Iron Man. It’s likely the writers of the series will adapt the Iron Man encounters for Ironheart, but it’s also plausible the interactions between the two characters will be fresh and original.
No matter the reason behind The Hood’s involvement in the series, Anthony Ramos is going to make audiences fall in love with the character. Parker Robbins is a bit of a tragic character, and Ramos has the skills to bring him to life. Hisrange of the emotional spectrumis masterful. All one has to do is watch his previous work to see that.
The Hood’s Connection to Mephisto
It seems that fans finally manifested Marvel’s Devil into the MCU with Sascha Baron Cohen’s involvement in the series. Comic book and MCU fans all across the internet ignited with excitement when Marvel seemingly confirmed that the comedy actor is bringing Mephisto to life. However, it’s peculiar that so many supernatural entities are appearing in a series about a super genius donning a high-tech suit of armor. Either way,Mephisto has somethingto do with The Hood, right? Not exactly.
The Hood and Mephisto, while they’re both supernatural characters, don’t have many run-ins with each other. The Hood is more connected to Dormammu in the comics. At one point, Dormammu boosts Parker’s powers to a whole new level and tasks him with the mission to kill Doctor Strange. Naturally, Doctor Strange defeated his would-be assassin, and Dormammu stripped The Hood of all the powers he bestowed upon him. However, no rumors of Dormammujoining the fray onIronheartexist.
It’s likely that Mephisto will be responsible for Parker obtaining the cloak and boots, manipulating him in some way behind the scenes. To what end? Riri is most likely developing some kind of technology he wants to destroy, or perhaps his involvement is completely unrelated to Riri at all.
