Dominique Thornemade her on-screen debut in the MCU as Riri Williams inBlack Panther: Wakanda Foreverahead of her getting a leading role in the upcoming Marvel Studios’ Disney+ seriesIronheart. If things had gone differently, however, it is very possible that we would have seen the actress much sooner and in a very different role. New screen test footage sees Thorne performing the late greatChadwick Bosemanas she auditioned for the role of T’Challa’s genus sister Shuri in 2018’sBlack Panther.
The new test footage comes as part of theMarvel Studios Assembled: The Making ofBlack Panther: Wakanda Foreveravailable on Disney+. In the short 27-second clip shared on Twitter by userMediaBRMN, the test footage sees Boseman and Thorne acting out a scene as the two siblings, which included Boseman flashing a warm smile to the actress. The role of Shuri eventually went toLetitia Wright, who would go on to don the title of Black Panther inWakanda Foreverafter Boseman’s untimely death in 2020.
Along with the test footage was a voiceover provided by producerNate Moore, who stated that while this audition didn’t see Thorne getting the role of Shuri, it was a performance they remembered and when the decision was made to introduce Riri Williams inBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever, she was the “first and only call.” This isn’t the first time that Thorne’s audition for Shuri has been covered, but it is the first time that actual footage from the screen test has been made available.
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The Future of Ironheart
Following her debut inBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever, Thorne will next be seen as Riri Williams, aka Ironheart, in the upcoming Disney+ series that shares its name with her hero alter-ego,Ironheart. The character made her first appearance in 2016 as a part of theInvincible Iron Mancomics and is a 15-year-old genius who is able to build her own Iron Man suit and uses it to become the titular hero. Part ofPhase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thorne leads a cast that is made up of currently announced stars such asAnthony Ramos(In the Heights),Alden Ehrenreich(Solo: A Star Wars Story),Manny Montana(Good Girls),Lyric Ross(This Is Us),Rashida “Sheedz” Olayiwola,Harper Anthony,Alden Ehrenreich,Zoe Terakes,Regan Aliyah(XO, Kitty), andRuPaul’s Drag RacewinnerShea Coulée, among others.Chinaka Hodge(Snowpiercer) will serve as the series’ showrunner and co-writer alongsideEveEwing.Sam BaileyandAngela Barneswill serve as directors on the six-episode with Proximity, the production company ofBlack PantherandBlack Panther: Wakanda ForeverdirectorRyan Coogler, serving as one of the production companies.
TheIronheartseries flies onto Disney+ in late 2023. You can check out the screen test with Thorne and Boseman down below.
