Ironheart star Dominique Thorne, who plays the titular tech prodigy Riri Williams, has revealed that even she wasn't immune to Marvel secrecy: she didn't know villain Mephisto would be in the series until she was getting to film scenes with Sacha Baron Cohen.
"I didn’t know he would show up until we started filming, actually," Thorne told The Hollywood Reporter. "We were finally up to that portion of our filming, so definitely the wind down. And for the duration of the shoot, we had faux names. We talked a lot about Dormammu, and we kind of focused on him but it wasn’t until we were getting ready to shoot that scene with Sacha Baron Cohen that I even knew [that was him]."
Mephisto originated in Marvel Comics in the '60s and fans have been convinced he would appear in the MCU since 2021's WandaVision. He finally appeared on screen in the Ironheart finale, played by Sacha Baron Cohen, and was revealed to be the source of Parker's mystical, corrupting cloak.
He goes on to try and convince Riri to make a deal with him – but what exactly that might entail, and whether Riri actually agrees to it, is left ambiguous. "I think it’s perfect, especially in the MCU, to not really have certainty over anything until it’s kind of spelled out," Thorne told the publication.
Next up for the MCU is The Fantastic Four: First Steps, which arrives in UK cinemas on July 24 and US theaters on July 25 as the first installment of Marvel Phase 6. While we wait, check out our guide to the other upcoming Marvel movies and shows still to come in 2025 and beyond.
