Ironheart Reveals The True Identity Of Alden Ehrenreich's Marvel Character (And It's A Shocker)

Contains spoilers for "Ironheart" Episode 3 — "We in Danger, Girl"

Before Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) goes to make a black market tech deal with Joe McGillicuddy (Alden Ehrenreich) in "Ironheart" Episode 2, "Will the Real Natalie Please Stand Up?," she casually mentions that the name sounds fake. No doubt fans had similar thoughts when Ehrenreich was cast on Marvel's new Disney+ series, as "Joe McGillicuddy" isn't any character from the comics. In the following episode, "We in Danger, Girl," viewers do learn his true identity — and it's Ezekiel Stane, the son of Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) from the first "Iron Man" movie.

To be fair, rumors suggested that Ehrenreich would play Ezekiel going as far back as January 2024, but it's a shocker nonetheless. A superpowered individual in his own right in the comics, Ezekiel made his Marvel debut in 2008, in "The Order" #8 from Matt Fraction and Barry Kitson. There we learn that Zeke grows up with a hatred for Tony Stark (instilled by his father) and creates new weapons he later sells to terrorists. He also augments his own physiology with biotech to become a true human cyborg. 

Zeke's cybernetic implants give him increased strength, force fields, and various weapons, all at the tip of his fingers. It appears the live-action version of Ezekiel has a similar interest in bionics, as Episode 3 shows him beginning to tinker with putting the technology in his body. 

Riri is understandably shocked to learn that her black market buddy is Obadiah Stane's son but not for the reasons you might automatically assume. She mentions that Obadiah died in a plane crash, a reference to the ending of "Iron Man," where it's implied that Obadiah's rampage in the Iron Monger suit will be covered up and his death explained away by news of a fake plane crash. It appears as though that story stuck: all these years later, the world at large still believes Obadiah was fundamentally a good man who died in a tragic accident. 

Zeke reveals the truth, namely that Obadiah tried killing Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) so that he could assume control of Stark Industries, adding that he doesn't want anything to do with his father, his family name, or his legacy. In fact, Zeke is so indifferent to the memory of his dad that Obadiah's remains are just sitting in a Ziploc bag on his kitchen counter. Obadiah has been dead for close to 20 years at this point, and Zeke still can't be bothered to put his ashes in an urn. 

Ezekiel's MCU entrance has been a long time coming, as an early draft of "The Avengers" script included him engaging in villainy alongside Loki (Tom Hiddleston). He's here now, and despite his timid demeanor, there's still a chance that a little bit of Obadiah resides in Zeke. "Ironheart" Episode 3 ends with Riri leaving behind evidence at a crime scene that could implicate Zeke, meaning there's a reason he could turn on her in a future episode.

"Ironheart" Episodes 1 through 3 are available to watch on Disney+ now. Episodes 4 through 6 will come out on July 1.