RDJ's Iron Man Never Fought Many Of His Comic Villains But His MCU Replacement Gives Marvel A Chance To Fix This Problem

Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark missed the chance to fight many of Iron Man‘s comic book villains, but Dominique Thorne’s Riri Williams can do it for him after Ironheart. Downey’s Iron Man was undoubtedly the MCU’s main character during the franchise’s first few years, starring in a trilogy of his own in the span of five years and spearheading the start of the age of heroes in Phases 1 and 2. Iron Man’s MCU journey was an exciting one, with several battles, team-ups, crossovers, and world-changing events taking place between the events of Iron Man and Avengers: Endgame.

After creating the first-ever Iron Man suit of armor, Tony Stark faced several MCU enemies. Iron Monger, Whiplash, Justin Hammer, Loki, the Chitauri, Aldrich Killian and his Extremis soldiers, Baron Strucker, Ultron, Baron Zemo, Captain America and his team, the Black Order, and Thanos were all the major opponents Iron Man fought throghout the Infinity Saga. Yet, there are many other villains Iron Man never even met despite fighting them countless times in the source material.

Iron Man’s Lack Of Villains Was One Of The MCU’s Biggest Tony Stark Flaws

Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man Never Met Many Of His Comic Book Villains

Iron Man fought several antagonists in the MCU, but few of them were exclusive Iron Man villains from the comics. Only Iron Monger, Whiplash, Justin Hammer, and Aldrich Killian are commonly known as Iron Man enemies. Notable Iron Man villains like Crimson Dynamo, Fin Fang Foom, Blizzard, Ultimo, and тιтanium Man have yet to make their MCU debut. Lesser-known Iron Man villains like the Living Laser, and Firepower would have been logical additions to Marvel’s Iron Man movies, but they were never set up or referenced.

The MCU’s Armor Wars movie may introduce some of Iron Man’s comic book villains, but they’ll probably be defeated by Don Cheadle’s Rhodey Rhodes a.k.a. War Machine

Meanwhile, Wenwu a.k.a. the Mandarin and Ghost were introduced as Shang-Chi and Ant-Man’s main antagonists, respectively. While not strictly Iron Man nemeses, MODOK and Madame Masque also have a long history as Tony Stark enemies, and they didn’t meet Downey’s Iron Man either. The MCU’s Armor Wars movie may introduce some of Iron Man’s comic book villains, but they’ll probably be defeated by Don Cheadle’s Rhodey Rhodes a.k.a. War Machine, if the project moves forward at Marvel Studios.

Ironheart Gives Iron Man’s Missing Villains A Chance To Appear In The MCU

Riri Williams Could Fight All The Iron Man Villains Tony Stark Couldn’t

Dominique Thorne's Riri Williams wears her third Ironheart suit of armor in her Disney+ show

Iron Man’s journey came to a definitive end in Avengers: Endgame, making it impossible for Iron Man’s rogue gallery to be retroactively linked to him. However, Riri Williams made her MCU debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and she’s growing into her own hero mantle in Phase 5’s Ironheart. Ironheart’s first official MCU enemy is Parker Robbins a.k.a. the Hood, who may or may not have ties to Mephisto or Dormammu. After fighting the Hood, Ironheart could do Iron Man’s missing villains justice and bring them to the big or the small screen.

While Riri Williams has fought villains such as Lucia von Bardas and Rhino in the comics, she’s yet to form a rogue gallery of her own. The MCU could take this opportunity to expand Ironheart’s villain roster, as well as to give each of Iron Man’s missing villains a worthy match in live-action. Both sides would benefit from this adjustment, especially considering that characters like Blizzard, Crimson Dynamo, and Ultimo have few chances of appearing in future MCU projects due to how crowded the franchise has become.

Ironheart Deserves To Fight Iron Man’s Missing Villains

Iron Man’s Legacy Could Take The Form Of His Enemies

Riri Williams flies wearing her gray suit of armor and helmet in Ironheart

With Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man arc concluded and the character unlikely to return— especially as Downey shifts focus to Doctor Doom — Riri Williams is left with no direct on-screen connection to Tony Stark. But apart from Stark’s influence on Riri’s inventions, Iron Man’s legacy could live on in the form of his villains. Just as Iron Man’s actions inadvertently gave rise to villains like Mysterio, Vulture, and Baron Zemo, the armored Avenger could leave behind multiple tech-based villains for his tech-based successor, Ironheart.