How Marvel's IRONHEART Sets the Stage for Doctor Doom’s Arrival in AVENGERS: DOOMSDAY

While Ironheart may look like a grounded, tech-driven Marvel series at first glance, the show is doing more than just fleshing out Riri Williams’ arc, it’s laying some surprisingly important groundwork for one of the most anticipated MCU debuts… Doctor Doom.

According to executive producer Ryan Coogler, the Disney+ series subtly tees up key elements that will come into play in Avengers: Doomsday.

During the red carpet premiere of Ironheart, Coogler offered some insight into how the show fits into the bigger picture. He explained that the way Ironheart blends advanced technology with the supernatural will feel familiar to longtime Marvel fans, especially those who know Doom’s story.

“We didn’t know it was going to be Doctor Doom and the Avengers when we first started. But he’s a guy in publishing who’s most famous for fusing technology and magic, so it’s a great sample of things that are to come in probably what’s going to be the biggest movie in Marvel history.”

The show introduces Anthony Ramos as The Hood, a street-level criminal who stumbles across a cloak that taps into powerful dark magic, something straight out of Doctor Strange’s world.

It creates a perfect contrast with Riri’s ultra-high-tech Ironheart suit, and the tension between those two worlds becomes a central theme.

Dominique Thorne, who returns as Riri Williams, added to that sentiment during the same event. She teased her character’s struggle with the temptation of magic:

“I think it’s a hilarious journey and also a really tempting journey that we see her go on once she realizes the full extent and capability of the magic side of the world.”

That internal tug-of-war feels like it’s pulled directly from the same thematic toolbox Marvel will be digging into with Doom.

It’s no coincidence that Doom’s hallmark in the comics is that exact combo with cutting-edge science warped together with ancient sorcery. By planting seeds of that duality now through Riri, The Hood, and the ethical questions surrounding technology, Ironheart is setting the stage for a villain who’s not just physically formidable, but ideologically dangerous.

And while Ironheart is all about Riri stepping into her own, it’s also a stealth primer for the tone and themes of Avengers: Doomsday. Coogler pointed out the show's surprising relevance in today’s world:

“It’s so crazy to be putting this movie out now, at the time where AI is on the front of everybody’s mind, technological ethics are on the front of everybody’s mind.”

That cultural context might just be the perfect backdrop for Doom’s arrival.

Ironheart premieres today on Disney+, while Avengers: Doomsday is set to shake up the MCU when it hits theaters on December 18, 2026.