Marvel Comics presented on Wednesday a new character called Riri Williams. The 15-year-old African-American will be wearing her Iron Man suit at the end of Civil War II when Tony Stark decides to follow a different path. Creators said the ending of the film would be surprising.

Riri joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology when she was 15 years old. Tony Stark is surprised when he sees the girls’ suit. Brian Michael Bendis, Iron Man’s creator, and writer told Times that the character is being designed alongside artist Stefano Caselli.

Marvel Comics presented on Wednesday a new character called Riri Williams. Photo credit: Movieweb
Marvel Comics presented on Wednesday a new character called Riri Williams. Photo credit: Movieweb

Bendis said he was inspired by a true-life story of a street-violence victim who went to college. She was the “most modern version of a superheroine,” he told Times. The 15-year-old girl is as Intelligent as Tony Stark when he was her age.

“In the latest issue of Iron Man, Tony is in a lab talking to himself, and he’s already aware that there’s some student at M.I.T. that’s reverse-engineered one of his old armors all by herself in her dorm room. He’s aware of her immediately,” Michael Bendis told Times.

Marvel new characters are sometimes controversial: Riri would represent a world that is not common in pop culture

Superhero creators are very careful when introducing new characters. They know that even slight changes can affect millions of fans. Bendis has been in charge of presenting new superheroes to the Marvel universe such as Jessica Jones, Miles Morales, and Maria Hill.

The new African-American Iron Girl is being designed by book artist Stefano Caselli, Mike Deodato and other artists. Bendis said some people on the Internet had made racist comments about Marvel’s new characters. He said Riri is a character such as Captain America or Cyclops.

The author said Riri is not the result of a meeting of Marvel executives. Instead, the 15-year-old girl is inspired in a world he sees every day but is not “represented enough in pop culture.” He said senior creators at Marvel wished they had been more inclusive when creating new characters.

Bendi has not revealed any other details about the ending of Civil War II. He confirmed that Tony Stark and Riri Williams would be interacting during the film. They apparently meet each other for the first time, while Stark is traveling over America.

Marvel is building a statue of Captain America in Brooklyn, New York

The comics company is going to erect a Captain America’s statue in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. The figure will be first presented at the San Diego Comic-Con in late July. Marvel executives said the sculpture show the superhero’s “strength and stoic form.”  

The fictional character said in Captain America: The First Avenger that he was “just a kid from Brooklyn.” The same phrase will be featured in the statute. Some fans have argued that Captain America was originally from Manhattan’s Lower East Side, according to the comic books.

Captain America: Civil War collected more than $181.8 million in United States box offices during its opening weekend, according to the BBC.

Source: Time Magazine