Marvel's Ironheart wrapped filming in Nov. of 2022 and didn't premiere until June of 2025, just under three years later. But for star and world-renowned drag queen Shea Couleé, the delay only helped make the series more relevant.
Millions know Couleé as the winner of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Season 5, as well as a finalist on RuPaul's Drag Race Season 9 and RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Season 7. In Ironheart, they swap the Main Stage for the MCU, playing Slug, a gifted hacker and member of the criminal crew that genius inventor Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) joins forces with. The crew's goal? To disrupt the lives of Chicago's wealthiest, along with their business ventures that would harm local communities. For Couleé, the story rang true on both a personal and political level.
"I'm somebody who comes from humble beginnings, and I'm somebody who sees a lot of the unfair distribution of wealth and resources to the same one percent," Couleé told Mashable in a Zoom interview. "I feel like now, especially with our current political climate, it has become more evident how these people take away from the most vulnerable, and it was great to be able to step into this world and play this character that's just sticking it to the man."
They added: "It was so much fun for me because it, in many ways, healed a lot of the frustrations that I have as somebody who exists at multiple intersections of marginalized communities, and it just was really empowering to be able to tell a story where somebody like me could go and get their own reparations from the people who have been oppressing them for so long."
Ironheart tackles pressing modern-day concerns.
Discussions of wealth disparity aren't the only pertinent themes on display in Ironheart. Riri's new AI N.A.T.A.L.I.E. (Lyric Ross) looks and acts like her late best friend Natalie, raising questions about AI consciousness and ethics. That conversation hits differently in 2025 than it would have in 2022, with the vast increase in AI tools and usage since then helping Ironheart feel surprisingly current in a fast-moving tech landscape. Even a quick joke about economic inflation carries more weight now than it would have three years ago! It's almost as if Ironheart anticipated the world it would be released into, something that isn't lost on Couleé.
"I feel like it is a reminder for me that everything happens when it's supposed to happen," Couleé said of the show's delayed release. "I am a firm believer in divine timing, and at the time when we wrapped, 2025 felt so far in the future. To see how what we created back then feels more relevant now is affirming that it was meant to come out at this time."
But perhaps no element of Ironheart feels as if it's changed more in significance between 2022 and 2025 than the casting of Couleé themself.
In 2022, the casting of a drag performer in one of the largest franchises in the world was already a statement in itself, one of inclusivity and broadening the horizons of drag and LGBTQ representation on screen. But in 2025, as the Trump administration relentlessly attacks the LGBTQ community and Marvel owner Disney pulled a transgender storyline from Pixar series Win or Lose, seeing a drag queen take center stage in the MCU feels downright revolutionary.
Much of that comes down to Couleé's performance, a blend of take-no-prisoners sass, glam, and anarchy that's pure fun to watch. Amid all the armored suit fights and discussions of tech versus magic, Ironheart also delivers six episodes of Couleé bringing their "Black, queer self" to the screen — a process that began by shaping Slug's look.
Shea Couleé directly shaped Slug's appearance in Ironheart.
Couleé had quite a bit of input into how Slug would look, starting with what they wore to their Ironheart audition.
"In reading the character, I thought to myself, 'for this audition, I should probably turn a look,'" Couleé recalled.
And turn a look they did, sporting black leather tactical gear and a harness vest that doubled as a purse. (Perfect for the hacker on the go.) That's not far off from what Slug sports for the crew's heists. Nor were the long nails Couleé wore for the audition, which became a Slug signature. After all, if your character is a hacker, they're guaranteed to have close-up shots of their fingers clacking away on a keyboard. Why not add some flair?
Couleé brought in their usual nail artist, Zoe Kosmopoulos (u>@bbygirlnails</u) to craft their Ironheart nails, from darker marbled nails to a set dripping with small chains. Couleé also did their own makeup as a way to get more acquainted with the character of Slug, knowing the character would be doing their own makeup within the world of the show.
"The costume department was so open to my opinions and my thoughts and feeling about how the character should dress, and it really became such an incredible collaborative process," Couleé said. "I don't know if a lot of people know, but my background in school was costume design, and so it was really cool to not only get to act and perform on screen, but also have a lot of impact on how the character looked."
A particularly striking element of Slug's look is their bright green hair. They share that character trait with Marvel Comics' Darkveil, a mutant who was inspired in part by Couleé. Ironheart doesn't confirm whether Slug is actually Darkveil, leaving their future in the MCU open-ended. However, both are drag performers, with Ironheart briefly touching on Slug's drag past in the fictional country of Madripoor.
In a quick flashback, and the only time viewers see Slug in full drag, they sit in a dressing room in an all-purple leather outfit, rocking a Grace Jones–inspired headpiece that covers up all of their hair.
"The trademark for Darkveil is that obvious green hair. We know that Slug has green hair too, but there was a conscious decision to not even show any hair for this flashback, because they wanted to maintain an element of mystery around Slug's drag past," Couleé explained.
(Couleé also mentioned they were "bummed" viewers missed out on seeing the shoes that accompanied the look, a pair of towering 3D-printed Windowsen boots. "They were honestly the coolest part of the whole outfit," they said.)
Shea Couleé brings Chicago drag excellence to Ironheart.
Since Slug is on the run in Ironheart, they no longer do drag. That's a shame, considering we miss out on any kind of Couleé performance. If we were to get one, though, Couleé envisions Slug performing a Doechii song.
"They give me Doechii vibes, just very alt Black girl," Couleé said. (Dare I say, "Alter Ego" is perfect for any character in a superhero show?)
Instead, Couleé imagines Slug visiting Chicago drag shows and fitting into the scene, even if they aren't necessarily performing.
"There is a really great drag and queer community here," Couleé said of Chicago, where they began their drag career and cemented themself as a Chicago legend. Look no further than their hot dog look on Drag Race Season 9 to get a sense of their Chicago pride.
Couleé being cast in Ironheart is one of the show's many Chicago-specific details. Others include Nancy's Pizza boxes (although Couleé says Slug is "a Lou Malnati's stan") and the brief flash of the State Street Preacher, a downtown Chicago mainstay, featured in an early sequence when Riri flies home. "The real Chicagoans, they know what's up," Couleé said of the moment.
But more than that, Ironheart showcases Chicago-based talent, like Ross, who plays N.A.T.A.L.I.E.; Matthew Elam, who plays Riri's friend and neighbor Xavier; and Anji White, who plays Riri's mother, Ronnie.
Couleé actually attended Chicago's Columbia College alongside White. In 2010, they costumed a show she was in: George C. Wolfe's The Colored Museum.
"It was so full circle when I walked onto set in Atlanta the first day and saw [White's] headshot up there," Couleé recalled. "I was like, 'No way. Girl, we have come so far, from that tiny little black box theater at Columbia College to now being on a Marvel series.'"
Couleé hopes this is only the beginning for Slug, saying, "Not many details have been given to me because they're very tight-lipped, but I am hopeful that we can see a really fun and interesting evolution for this character, and the possibility that there could be more to them than what we see."
Still, despite the uncertainty, Couleé has one definite wish for Slug's future: more fights.
"I would love to see Slug get their hands dirty and kick some ass. Slug hangs back and lets everyone get their hands dirty, which I understand because, girl, if you're going to be getting these nails done, you don't want to mess that up," Couleé laughed. "But you know, you can use your feet! A little roundhouse kick won't hurt nobody."
