How ‘Ironheart’ Star Regan Aliyah Brought Zelma Stanton from Page to Screen

Zelma Stanton, welcome to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Marvel Television’s Ironheart (streaming now on Disney+) introduces a whole host of iconic characters from the pages of Marvel Comics, but one of the most delightful is Zelma Stanton, played by Regan Aliyah. Zelma made her comics debut in DOCTOR STRANGE (2015) #1 by Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo, introduced as a magically inclined librarian who teams up with Doctor Strange.

In Ironheart, Zelma brings her magical expertise to Chicago, where she proves to be a valuable ally to engineer Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne). 

“We tried our very best to hew as closely as possible to Zelma from the comic book pages, down to the horn-rimmed glasses and the iconic orange hat that she wears,” Ironheart showrunner Chinaka Hodge previously said. “She’s from the Bronx in publishing, so our backstory is that she spent some time in the Bronx but ended up back in Chicago. We loved creating a couple different outposts in the MCU where magic might take place.”

It's a magical debut for Aliyah, who’s long been a fan of Marvel comics, TV shows, and films. Ahead of the Ironheart finale, Marvel.com sat down with her for a video conversation, where she opened up about bringing Zelma from page to screen. (As a nod to her character’s roots, Aliyah even wore a sweatshirt declaring: “I’m a librarian. What’s your superpower?”)

MARVEL.COM: What made you want to be a part of Ironheart?

REGAN ALIYAH: I’ve wanted to be a part of Marvel since I was young. I have a story that’s shared with so many other Marvel fans of going to all the opening night showings. I also sat through a 32-hour movie marathon at the theater — no leaving, no nothing. I just had a blanket and my pajamas, and I was ready. [Laughs]

It was such a big thing for me and specifically my mom. My mom grew up connecting with her dad by reading comics, so that was something she passed down to us, like, “This is Iron Man. This is Captain America. Stan Lee created this, this, and this.” So, we just knew that as the norm while everyone [else] was watching cartoons. We were diving into these comic book universes, and I’ve always loved it. It was something bigger than us.

When I started acting, everybody on my team knew that my one dream [was] to be a part of Marvel. I said it all the time: “I don’t care if I’m running in New York, or I got snapped, or Hulk smashed me.” It didn’t matter what it was! I could have been Girl #37 in the background. I just wanted to be part of the world.

My manager called me one day and was like, “Hey, I have an audition for you.” I was like, “Why are you calling me about this? You [usually] just send an email.” She’s like, “I have an audition for you,” and I was like, “Right. Let me lock in.” I’ve never locked in so hard in my life. It was such a quick process from me auditioning to then getting on a Zoom call with the directors to all of a sudden being on a flight. It was so overwhelming. Every day that I was on that set, I was like, “You need to be professional and do your job and not cry.” [Laughs] The day that I wrapped was the one second where it felt like I could let go.

MARVEL.COM: You mentioned how you’re a longtime comics fan. Did you read a lot of Zelma Stanton comics to prepare?  

REGAN ALIYAH: Yes! Zelma is so cool. There’s something I really like about that street-level, grounded type of character. It’s one of the reasons people love Spider-Man: Yes, he could be fighting something that’s so otherworldly, but at the same time, he’s just your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, you know what I mean? [I loved] how Zelma is like, “I kind of got myself into this situation,” and then she gets wrapped into this Doctor Strange world. Her helping Strange in the comics causes a ripple effect. I love that for her because it takes her out of her comfort zone.

She’s a very honest person. I always think of her like my little oversharing self, like in her first original [comic] appearance, when she starts spewing out secrets about herself. But all the way through her appearances and STRANGE ACADEMY, she’s surrounded by all these people with all of these powers, and she’s still somehow so grounded in the midst of everything chaotic around her. I really like that.

MARVEL.COM: Zelma’s look in Ironheart is very true to her look in the comics, with the beanie and the glasses. Tell me about figuring out her style.

REGAN ALIYAH: I was just looking at my camera roll because I have 40 pictures of me in different glasses. It was that serious for us to find that Zelma signature look. It feels very comic book accurate, and I think that’s so cool. I love that they stayed true and just modernized it to the time period that the show’s in.

MARVEL.COM: The production design is also extraordinary, and I love the bookshop-slash-candy-store where Zelma works. What do you remember most about being on that set?

REGAN ALIYAH: Practical sets are so cool. It’s not a green screen, and it’s not CGI. I was walking around, like, “Can I see any Easter eggs? Do y’all have stuff hidden from me?” The candy that’s behind me, I was munching on it. They know that I’m a candy eater. [Laughs] It makes the experience so much easier as an actor to act in a real space. Even on scenes that I wasn’t a part of, I would walk over to see their setup. There was a scene where Anthony [Ramos] is going through changes, and I’m looking at him with all these veins physically sticking out in real life. You could touch it. I was like, “I can’t believe I am on a Marvel set for a Marvel show.”

MARVEL.COM: What was your favorite day on set?

REGAN ALIYAH: The most memorable for me has to be the montage of infusing magic into Riri’s suit. I always say that Zelma is in a story that she’s not necessarily supposed to be in. She’s not supposed to be dilly-dallying with certain types of magic, so she’s doing things that are a little under the table. That was the first time I felt like I really merged with everyone who’s helping Riri, and that was really fun.

MARVEL.COM: As someone who’s wanted to join the MCU for a while now, was there anything about making this show that surprised you?

REGAN ALIYAH: I think I was just happy that the real life matched my dreams. It was everything that I thought it would be and more. I also thought it would be a lot harder to keep secrets. Maybe that’s because of Tom Holland’s slip-ups. [Laughs] I was like, “Dang, how am I not going to tell?” But it wasn’t that hard. It was kind of fun to be like, “You’ve just got to wait and see!” I enjoyed that. So Marvel, I can keep secrets if you want to put me in more things!

Marvel Television’s Ironheart is streaming now, only on Disney+.