Tony Stark’s journey from billionaire playboy philanthropist to true hero came to an end in Avengers: Endgame. He sacrificed himself for the good of those around him – and for mankind itself. But now we are left without an Iron Man for following movies – so who could replace him?
Avengers: Endgame saw a shocking turn of events take place, with some surprise deaths for Natasha Romanoff AKA Black Widow and Tony Stark.
Natasha will be back in Black Widow to hopefully provide an insight into what happened in Budapest in which Tony is also expected to appear.
However, it looks unlikely Stark will have a regular appearance in any of these films, except perhaps through his tech or in flashback.
So who could possibly lead the Avengers and be the hero we all need?
There have been some major rumours about this, with Avengers: Endgame making some clear suggestions.
Who could be the new Iron Man? (Image: Marvel)
James Rhodes AKA War Machine
James Rhodes, or Rhodey to his best mate, Tony Stark, has been sporting some Iron Man-style tech for a little while now.
His first opportunity to don the suit was in Iron Man 2 when the military decided it was time to weaponise Iron Man’s suits in order to protect the country.
Needless to say, this did not go too well, as Rhodes’ prototype of the armour ended up under the control of Ivan Vanko and Justin Hammer.
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War Machine, as it was called, was renamed the Iron Patriot as he wore the armour to track down The Mandarin in Iron Man 3.
This was yet again a bad idea, as it turned out Aldrich Killian, another rival engineer to Stark, wanted to steal the armour to kidnap the President.
Iron Man and War Machine triumphed yet again and since then Rhodey worked with SHIELD in their various missions, meaning he truly knows his way around the Iron Man tech.
This might make him the perfect person to step into the boots of Iron Man – despite the fact the only man who has ever been Iron Man is Tony Stark.
Rhodey as War Machine/Iron Patriot (Image: Marvel)
Pepper Potts
Pepper Potts, Tony Stark’s other half and business partner, took over running Stark Industries when Tony was off gallivanting in his Iron Man suit.
She clearly has a thorough knowledge of the tech and, as seen in Avengers: Endgame, she even has her own suit.
Her first foray in wearing an Iron Man suit was in Iron Man 3 when she was put in the Mark XLII to protect her from The Mandarin.
After this, in the Battle of Earth at the end of Avengers: Endgame, she wears the Mark XLIX, which has many of the same properties as Iron Man’s own suit, meaning she could really take on some baddies.
Ironheart
The “new Iron Man” in the comics is Ironheart, a young girl who is mentored by Tony Stark, so much so she creates some of her own badass technology.
Riri Williams is this character in the comics who is a teen genius who makes her own incredible suit.
She is currently featuring in the Marvel Animation show Marvel Rising, voiced by Sofia Wylie while Iron Man is voiced by Mick Wingert.
As she is already featuring elsewhere in the Marvel world it may seem unlikely she comes to the MCU, however Ms Marvel, AKA Kamala Khan is also featured in that show, as well as Captain Marvel, AKA Carol Danvers.
Could she move from the animated screen to the MCU, or will this be a case of the “alternate timeline” theories being more real than we expect?
READ MORE: Black Widow release date, cast, plot – All we know so far about solo Black Widow movie
Pepper Potts and Iron Man (Image: Marvel)
Shuri
Shuri, sister of T’Challa, has proved to be a brave warrior as well as a true pro with some exciting technology.
Wakanda’s technology is worlds ahead of some of that which exists on earth, so perhaps Shuri could harness some of that technology to make her own suit?
As well as that, with the final syllable in her name being Ri, could she be the MCU version of Riri Williams?
Spider-Man with Tony Stark’s tech (Image: Marvel)
Spider-Man
Many have seen the beautiful mentoring relationship between Tony Stark and Peter Parker and thought perhaps he is going to step into Iron Man’s metal boots – especially as he has tried out the tech as the Iron Spider.
Much of Spider-Man: Far From Home deals with Parker’s grief at losing his mentor, while having to deal with journalists asking him about the Avengers (given he is one of the only ones still standing.)
Sadly, it seems unlikely Spider-Man will become Iron Man – however, he may take over as a leader of the Avengers, as is seen in iterations of the comic books.