On the day of “Ironheart’s” premiere, Robert Downey Jr. met with star Dominique Thorne over FaceTime to express his support for the actress and series amid a review bombing campaign ahead of the show’s release.
The show, which premieres Tuesday night on Disney+, has received middling to poor reviews from critics. But it was also hit with hundreds of often identical negative reviews by users who have not seen the show on Rotten Tomatoes, a form of harassment historically deployed against works focused on women, people of color or LGBTQ characters.
“I’ve grown so fond of you, it’s bananas,” Downey said in the video. “Congratulations. I’ll be watching it with the world.”
You can watch the video, released on Instagram, below.
Downey captioned the post “Riri and Tony don’t follow trends #goodmorningIronheart”. The video, featuring the two actors, went live only hours before the three-episode premiere of “Ironheart” releases at 6 p.m. PT.
At the beginning of the video, Downey points out, “It’s June 24, which is…” Thorne touchingly responds, “It’s dad’s birthday” — a reference to Downey’s father, Robert Downey Sr.
“God, you’ve been doing too much press,” Downey jokes. The two then celebrate “Ironheart’s” release.
The post shows a touching act of solidarity from Downey, who gave arguably the most notable and popular performance from the Marvel Cinematic Universe in his 11-year run as Tony Stark. The actor will return to the franchise next year when he portrays Doctor Doom in “Avengers: Doomsday” (or possibly this summer if he cameos in “Fantastic Four: First Steps”).
With the unwarranted heat “Ironheart” has already received, it’s a welcome sentiment from the Marvel star.
“Ironheart” marks only Thorne’s second appearance as Riri Williams, a.k.a. Ironheart (well, third if we’re counting the Disney cruise). The character first appeared in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” when Namor hunted her for creating a Vibranium detector that led an expedition to his underwater domain. By the end of the film, Williams appears in her first functioning Iron Man suit.
Prior to tonight’s release of the first half of “Ironheart,” the series has a 32% audience score despite the fact audiences haven’t yet seen the show. Thorne and “Ironheart” have consistently faced online attacks, as has become common in recent MCU films and series starring women, people of color and members of the LGBTQ community. “Ironheart” received a truncated marketing campaign, with the first trailer releasing less than a month and a half before the series began streaming.
In Marvel comics, the superhero debuted in “Invincible Iron Man (2016) #7” and soon took over as Iron Man following Tony Stark’s apparent death in “Civil War II.” This was a period of time when many Marvel heroes were being replaced or working alongside younger legacy characters ascending to the mantle. Riri Williams faced harsher criticism than most.
Williams views Stark as a mentor, speaking to an A.I. version of his consciousness following the events of “Civil War II.” This adds a touching parallel to Downey’s message, as the two characters have no formal relationship in the MCU. With the amount of unwarranted hate Thorne has received, Downey’s video is a nice reminder that one of the world’s biggest movie stars remains in her corner.
“17 years from the birth of the MCU to the premiere of ‘Ironheart,’” Downey says in the video. “And we’re in this love together.”