We've been waiting to see Mephisto in the MCU since WandaVision. While he was namedropped in Agatha All Along, Ironheart finally introduced us to Sacha Baron Cohen's devil in last night's finale.
Cohen wasted no time in taking to social media to announce his arrival, and we'd say this bodes well for his future as Mephisto. Ironheart wrapped production in late 2022, meaning he's been sidelined for the better part of three years. Many actors would move on to other projects, but Cohen is selective with what he works on, and this appears to suggest he plans to stick around.
Marvel Studios must have signed him up for more than just a one-off appearance in Ironheart, and there have already been rumblings about Mephisto factoring into Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday.
Ultimately, rumoured projects like Doctor Strange 3, Midnight Sons, and Ghost Rider seem like the most obvious next destination for him, but until Kevin Feige weighs in, we'll have to wait and see.
Marvel Studios has also released a gallery of official stills from Ironheart's fourth, fifth, and sixth episodes. In those, we see Riri's Dark Dimension-powered suit, the upgraded Ezekiel Stane, Zelma Stanton, and more of Cohen's Mephisto.
There's also a shot of Riri from the closing moments of the finale, and it appears she's fully embraced magic. Combining that with science promises to make her a very different type of superhero in the MCU, and likely quite different from her comic book counterpart.
Having Riri entrenched in the supernatural corner of this world isn't a bad thing, though, particularly if it means she's more than just a wannabe Iron Man (legacy heroes have proven to be a tough nut for Marvel Studios to crack).
Set after the events of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Marvel Television’s Ironheart pits technology against magic when Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) - a young, genius inventor determined to make her mark on the world - returns to her hometown of Chicago.
Her unique take on building iron suits is brilliant, but in pursuit of her ambitions, she finds herself wrapped up with the mysterious yet charming Parker Robbins aka "The Hood" (Anthony Ramos).
The series also stars Lyric Ross, Alden Ehrenreich, Regan Aliyah, Manny Montana, Matthew Elam and Anji White. Chinaka Hodge is head writer and executive producer; episodes are directed by Sam Bailey and Angela Barnes.
"Ironheart soars when Dominique Thorne, Anthony Ramos, Alden Ehrenreich, and Lyric Ross are on screen," we wrote in our 3* review, "but a by-the-numbers story means the series falls short of reaching the same heights as Iron Man. Still, the finale is an undeniable must-see."
All episodes of Ironheart are now streaming on Disney+.