Kevin Feige reveals the actors reprising their respective MCU roles in the successful return to San Diego Comic-Con, after famously skipping last year, with a Hall H presentation. There, Feige laid out what lies ahead for the franchise following the competition of The Infinity Saga. On top of projects for the big screen, a string of TV shows coming exclusively to Disney+ have been confirmed, including the What If? animated show.
Based on the What If? comics first published in the 1970s, the TV series with the same name will visualize how the MCU would've turned out if some key points in its history happened slightly differently. Previous reports already revealed one scenario where Peggy Carter (Haley Atwell) gets the super soldier serum to become Captain America rather than Steve Rogers. This has now been seemingly confirmed, with Atwell among those who are returning to voice their franchise characters, but she's not the only one.
More than two dozen MCU actors were officially announced for the What If? series ,which arrives in summer 2021. The selection is a mix of recently active players in the franchise - Anthony Mackie, Josh Brolin, Tom Hiddleston, Michael Douglas and Chadwick Boseman - alongside those fans haven't seen in quite a while, such as Stanley Tucci, Toby Jones, and Dominic Cooper. Check out the full list below:
Looking at that cast list, fans can get an idea of what circumstances Marvel Studios will be playing with in the What If? show. The inclusion of Tucci, Cooper and Atwell reinforces Peggy as an alternate Captain America. Meanwhile, the return of Michael Rooker as Yondu, Sean Gunn as Kraglin, Chris Sullivan as Taserface and Djimon Hounsou as Korath will have something to do with the Guardians of the Galaxy. Paul Rudd and Douglas' narrative, on the other hand, will tie into the events of the Ant-Man franchise. Finally, the involvement of Chris Hemsworth and Hiddleston may be a direct lift from What If Vol. 1 #47, which wondered what could've happened if Loki was worthy of Mjolnir instead of Thor.
However, another story that the Disney+ series can explore is what could've happened if Thor went for Thanos' head in Avengers: Endgame. What's great about the What If? series is that it doesn't factor into the established MCU canon, so it's not boxed in by continuity issues. This means that Marvel Studios can be as creative as they want. And since it's animated, it won't be that difficult to ask other MCU actors to participate. If they do this right, the show could be a great palate cleanser for fans.
