‘What If…?’ Creative Team on the Guardians of the Multiverse & That Captain Carter Twist
Spoiler Alert
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Marvel’s What If…?, Season 1, Episode 9, “What If… The Watcher Broke His Oath?”]
Marvel’s What If…? has wrapped its first season, and it ended with anything but a whimper as The Watcher (Jeffrey Wright) stayed true to the finale’s title, “What If… The Watcher Broke His Oath?”
Hoping to stop Ultron’s (Ross Marquand) insidious mission to silence the multiverse’s inhabitants, The Watcher turns to several familiar faces from throughout the season to help. Captain Carter (Hayley Atwell), Party Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Dr. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), Star-Lord T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), and Gamora (Cynthia McWilliams). Together they formed the Guardians of the Multiverse.
(Credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
“The notion of the Guardians of the Multiverse was actually percolating before we even started slating this season,” head writer A.C. Bradley tells TV Insider. “As we were picking our episodes with Kevin [Feige] and Brad [Winderbaum], we had this notion of The Watcher breaking his oath at the end of the first season and pulling these characters from their different worlds.”
The hastily put-together team was comprised of previously featured characters except for Gamora who is best known for being part of the Guardians of the Galaxy. “Gamora was supposed to be in an episode that was slated to air earlier in the season with Tony [Stark], but due to COVID production delays, that episode has been pushed to Season 2,” Bradley reveals, adding: “We like to think her inclusion in the finale is a teaser for what’s going to come in the future.”
(Credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
As for the decision behind choosing Captain Carter, Star-Lord T’Challa, Party Thor, Killmonger, and Dr. Strange with Gamora, Bradley reveals, “we were like, ‘Who were our favorites?’ Obviously Peggy Carter, and Star-Lord T’Challa. We loved the notion of Gamora being a good guy and wearing her father’s armor. And you can’t really have much more fun than Party Thor.”
Director Bryan Andrews reveals that Dr. Strange’s episode served as a catalyst for segueing the story towards the Guardians of the Multiverse. “We knew that when The Watcher needed help, he would go to Strange because he’s insanely powerful. It just makes perfect sense.”
(Credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
Ultimately, the Guardians of the Multiverse were successful in their mission and parted ways by the finale’s end, but is there a chance they could reunite? In the world of What If…?, anything is possible. “Well, the MCU Multiverse is so huge,” Bradley notes.
While she isn’t sure they’ll be able to revisit every character introduced in Season 1, Bradley does reveal, “our post-credits scene is a bit of a promise, and hopefully, we get to do good on it.” The scene she’s referring to involves Captain Peggy Carter who uncovers the Hydra Stomper from Episode 1 while on a mission with Natasha Romanoff (Lake Bell).
The metal bodysuit previously worn by Steve Rogers (Josh Keaton) supposedly has someone inside it. Whether or not that someone is Steve Rogers will remain to be seen. We’ll have to wait,” Andrews teases. We’ll do so gladly with the promise of Season 2 on the way.
Marvel’s What If…?, Season 1, Streaming Now, Disney+
