Love is an action word, Lyric Ross tells us during our conversation. It’s not just a feeling — it’s shown in the actions and things we do for one another. It’s acts of service, being present in each other’s lives, and showing up when it matters most. Love is being the caring friend but also the voice of reason and accountability. It’s taking care of each other at our lowest lows and celebrating our highest highs.

The bond between Natalie Washington (Ross) and Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) embodies that kind of love and sisterhood—the true core of Marvel’s Ironheart.

While Marvel has given us great examples of friendship before, Ironheart feels different. Seeing two women of colour uplift each other, support one another in their darkest moments, and form a powerful network of care is refreshing — especially in the superhero genre. With the solid foundation laid in season one, fans are hopeful we’ll see more of Natalie and Riri’s relationship explored in future seasons, and that it will open doors to more stories told through this lens.

In conversation with 1883 Magazine’s Dana Reboe, Lyric Ross discusses Ironheart, why she avoids watching herself on screen, what she loves about Natalie Washington, the Marvel superhero she’d love to play, advice she’d give to Riri and Natalie, and much more.

Lyric, thank you so much for your time today. I really appreciate it. Have you had the chance to watch the (Ironheart) finale along with everybody else? Or have you seen it already?

No, I can only take so much of my voice and face [laughter].

Are you not a big fan of watching yourself on screen?

I can confidently say that I hate it. It’s hard for me. I really only do it so I can grow, so I know what to do or not take with me for next time. It’s a battle to overcome everything that you’re not feeling about yourself.

You’re up there with a lot of actors. Dame Maggie Smith said the same thing about Downton Abbey. She never watched any of it. It was just the joy of acting for her. So, circling into Ironheart, the beating heart of the show to me is the relationship between Riri and Natalie. How would you describe their friendship, and what stands out and makes it special to you as a viewer?

Well, I’ve heard a few people say that their dynamic is a great example of what sisterhood means. That strong foundation, to have somebody by your side who is going to be there for you no matter what. Especially with someone like Riri, who feels she should do most things alone. Everybody has their reasons to isolate themselves. But what we don’t always realize is that that’s not something we need in that moment. We need support. We need those conversations and that accountability.

‘Love’ is an action word. It’s about what you give out and the way you move when it comes to the people you care about. So, I think it’s a lot of examples of that, you know. It’s more than what you say, and it’s more than all of the cute moments. It can be harsh sometimes, and it can be sweet.

You need friends in your corner who are willing to hype you up but also willing to call you out on your bullshit, essentially. Natalie is the sunshine friend to me, and Riri is the Black Cat friend. What is your favourite thing about playing that dynamic opposite Dominique (Thorne)?

It was so fun because I feel like me, personally, I’m more like Miss Williams [laughs]. It was a lot of fun just bouncing off of that. It was really fun, you know. And she’s an awesome scene partner. Just an awesome person in general. To know that she had my back in scenes as much as I had hers, I think it made all the difference in the world because we were playing very complex characters on a very high scale. So, it’s very easy to get a little anxious about our choices in the moment.

Building a lot of trust within a short period of time is no easy feat. But it paid off because the chemistry between you two just radiates off the screen. Some of my favourite scenes were just you two. The comedic timing was amazing. Can you talk a little bit about getting the role? What about Natalie struck you as interesting, and what did you find relatable about her when you were reading the script?

It wasn’t until they told me I got the role that I actually found out about Natalie. For the audition, they didn’t give me much of anything. It basically said this is a Marvel project and here’s some sides, do what you feel, come up with whatever. There was no description, or the names were different. So, I kind of just had to wing it. But once I got to know Natalie a little more, I’m not going to lie, I thought I had her figured out in the very beginning.

I was a bit cliché with her. I decided to just drop everything that I thought I knew and just let her take me on this journey of getting to know her and the difference between Natalie Washington and AI Natalie. And that even though NATALIE hasn’t lived life, she’s still going through this new challenge of understanding how she can be this literal human but not have gone through anything that she’s seeing. She embraces the entire process with open arms, and she’s not afraid of anything that comes with it. So, it was a cool journey. I’d say it was a little too quick, like five months is not enough to really get this girl down. I hope I get to have another chance at her.

Here’s hoping that Ironheart is renewed for a season two because we need a season two. Are you listening Marvel? Please and thank you. What is a trait of hers that you like versus one you don’t?

She has very little to no fear when it comes to any challenge that she’s facing, right? Especially for the mental health or protection of Ms. Riri Williams. I think that courage, that bravery, is very inspiring in a few ways, especially for me, because I do struggle with that. Being put in rooms where you hear a lot of no’s is tricky. She puts up with that a lot when it comes to Riri, and then later on her little brother, which is heartbreaking. But the fact that she is so quick to say, “Okay, it is what it is. I still know who I am, and I’m just going to let things be. I’m still going to do me. Whatever my service is, whatever I know to do best, that’s going to continue.” And the fact that she never had a doubt, even when other people were telling her otherwise, you know, you can’t do this. You can’t be that. It’s like, well, “Apparently you don’t know me.” I love that vibe about her. It taught me a lot of things. As far as what I don’t like about her, I hate to say this.

She’s kind of a pushy girl [laughter]. She’s kind of a pushy girl and like I said, I see a decent amount of myself in Riri, so I also looked at her as annoying sometimes. It’s things like that. I understand that she means well, you can see what her intentions are and they’re absolutely pure, but they can come off very aggressive. I guess that would be one of the negatives.

What was your favourite thing about filming the series?

There are some really good people a part of this project. Behind the scenes and on screen, just a bunch of down-to-earth and very humble people who are just excited and passionate about this project. I really like how some of us came together, a few of the cast members said to Dom, “Hey, we are here for you. We’re here to support you and lift you up as number one.” If I remember correctly, this was her first lead role. And that’s not to say that she really needed our help as a leader. But just for her to know that she had a sea of people who were ready to fight for her and fight with her. I love the fact that we were one with that. I think those little personal moments that we had were the best for me.

Moving from the series a little bit, if you could play a superhero of your choice, who would it be and why? Marvel or DC? We don’t discriminate here.

I mean, I would still stick with Marvel. It can be a man or a woman, right? And it could be a villain too, right?

Oh, of course. What are you thinking? I see those wheels turning.

I love Professor X and Magneto equally. But I also love Storm. You know, there’s so much you can do with that power of controlling the weather. And I don’t even think that the MCU has really tapped into that yet, you know what I mean? I’m looking forward to projects with her. Love me some Jean Grey.

Have you had the chance to watch X-Men 97?

Oh, yeah. Because I mean, Magneto in that is… I sympathize. But I am going to say Storm. She deserves her own movie, her own origin. I’m surprised Marvel hasn’t really dug into that.

She’s an omega-level mutant. Like, why wouldn’t you use her?

I’m really interested in seeing her full potential.

Outside of the superhero genre, what other genre would you like to tackle? And why?

I feel like I am really just getting started on this journey in my career. So right now, I’m just focused on anything that captivates me. Like, of course, I would love for it to be outside of the action and adventure world and the melodrama world, since I’ve hit both of those pretty recently. I would love to do something drastically different, hopefully, just to see where my range can fly. But yeah, I kind of want to try a bit of everything if I’m given a chance to see what I like and what I don’t like.

That leads me to my next question. When you look over your career thus far, This Is Us, Wendell & Wild, and now Ironheart, what are some lessons you’ve learned about yourself and the industry that you kind of carry with you as you continue?

I kind of get really anxious and focused on going to the next thing, but I’ve learned to just check in with myself and be like, “Hey, you accomplished something really great, you know, let’s try and celebrate that a little bit.” And then we can move on to whatever is for you in the future. But I’ve never been taught to celebrate. It’s like you’ve got to stay busy, or you can find yourself falling back to square one. And it’s not like I’ve been directly told that.

It’s just that you see it in other people. They don’t take care of themselves. It’s not easy to speak up for yourself when somebody is taking advantage of you throughout the process of this business.

It’s a hard decision that you have to make when it comes to putting yourself first. It’s a whole other level, right? And I don’t think a lot of people see that outside of the business, especially with all of these pictures on the red carpets, we’re all glammed up and fabulous and all the smiles. But, there’s a lot that goes on that people don’t see. And not to say that you have to rat everybody out, which, you know, there’s a time and a place for that if necessary. But just be there for you and not necessarily for the business.

I like that a lot because if you don’t advocate for yourself, then who will? Beyond acting, what is one thing you’d like to do once all the press and everything is over? What does a day off look like for you?

A day off? Unfortunately, I love shopping.

Unfortunately?

Unfortunately, because I don’t need to spend too much money [laughs].

Marvel money.

Listen, that Marvel money was three years ago, okay? [laughter] I like shopping. I like walking around. I live in the city. There’s a lot of good stuff to do here. From time to time, I visit my baby cousins, my uncle, and his wife, and spend time with them. Spend time really just babysitting. He’ll be like, “Hey, you all should come over and hang out with the kids,” and then he’ll just leave. So being with family, watching films, just appreciating my apartment. That’s a good time for me.

Circling back to Ironheart. Now that Natalie Washington is back among the living, what do you think the potential ramifications are for her and for Riri going forward?

There’s a lot of explaining that is going to have to take place. Possibly before anything else happens. Because I’m sure Natalie has a whole bunch of questions. To her knowledge, nothing crazy happened. There was no traumatic event.

I just kept thinking about what the conversation between Riri and Natalie is going to be like if Riri says something along the lines of, “Hey, I made a deal with this demonic entity or devil question mark to bring you back. Hope that’s okay.” I can’t imagine that will go over too well.

It would turn into a fight. Like a physical fight.

That definitely tracks with what we know about Nat. And my last question. What is a piece of advice you’d give to Riri and Natalie as yourself?

I would probably say hold on to each other for dear life. If you know that you have something good and you know that this can take you up to being the best version of yourself, never let that possibility go. Keep fighting for each other. Keep fighting with each other. And yeah, you all are both needed in each other’s lives. So, take advantage of that. It’s okay to take advantage of your resources and the people around you.

Let people lend a helping hand. That one was specifically for Ms. Riri Williams.

Ironheart is out now.

Interview Dana Reboe
Photography JJ Geiger
Styling Enrique Melendez
Hair Randy Stodghill
Makeup Hendra Nasril