The upcoming release of What If...? Season 2 will feature a team of Avengers that is new for the show in some ways, and familiar to MCU fans in others.
The second season of the MCU's first animated Disney+ original series premieres on December 22, with one episode releasing each day through December 30. This marks the first time the MCU is using this release schedule for a single project.
This is one of two shows to see experimentation in how it is released over the next couple months, with Echo being the MCU's first live-action Disney+ show to have all its episodes released at once.
New Avengers Team in What If...? Season 2
On the poster for What If...? Season 2, one of several scenes teased shows a new roster of Avengers for the MCU, seemingly inspired by the team from 2012's Avengers.
But who exactly makes up this new team?
Peggy Carter (Captain Carter)
Played by Hayley Atwell, the Captain Carter variant of Peggy Carter debuted in the first episode of What If...? back in 2021, and she appeared on the big screen the next year in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
The first season's post-credit scene, which set up a plot for her and Steve Rogers seemingly inspired by Captain America: The Winter Soldier, indicates a continuation of this specific version of the character in Season 2. Whether that version is both the one in the potential new Winter Soldier story and the one on the new roster of Avengers remains to be seen.
Wasp
The Wasp who appears in the new poster is a bit of a mystery. In the poster, she is not wearing the classic yellow-hued suit seen in Season 1 and in Hope Van Dyne's other appearances in the MCU for the most part. The red-hued suit indicates that perhaps the Wasp of this new Avengers team could be her mother, Janet Van Dyne.
This would actually make a lot of sense, as in Marvel Comics, Janet's Wasp was one of the original Avengers, and on the iconic cover for the group's first team-up, she is wearing a red-tinted suit like the one in the What If...? poster.
Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow)
Natasha Romanoff had a lot of story focus in What If...?'s first season, with one version of the character ending up in the universe where Hank Pym killed her counterpart along with the other original Avengers of that Earth, besides Steve Rogers.
As such, it is more likely than not that the Black Widow on the Season 2 poster is not the Black Widow who is currently fighting Loki in the mostly Avenger-less world, as other characters on this list are dead in that alternate universe.
Tony Stark (Iron Man)
The appearance of Iron Man in the new poster is the main indication that the universe shown might not be the one where Captain Carter originated. In that world, Steve Rogers operated a version of the Iron Monger suit developed by Howard Stark.
As such, it would be odd if the Iron Man of that world was technologically at the same place as his MCU counterpart by the events of The Avengers, as there were several additional decades to develop the suit technology in the Captain Carter world than in the MCU — the technology should theoretically be far more advanced.
Thor
Thor's most notable appearance in What If...? Season 1 was in the episode about what the world would have been like had Thor been an only child. Given the lack of context for the characters in the poster and what they are fighting, it is hard to say how Thor got involved, and if they are even fighting Loki in the new scene like the Battle of New York aesthetics might indicate.
Regardless, his inclusion on the team makes sense as, like Tony Stark, he was on both the original roster of comics Avengers and the original roster of MCU Avengers.
Clint Barton (Hawkeye)
Rounding out the new roster is Clint Barton's Hawkeye. Though animated, this marks the character's first new appearance since his 2021 series, which aired soon after What If...?'s first season.
In the new poster, he doesn't look particularly different from how he did in 2012's The Avengers, but more about what makes this character different from his MCU counterpart will certainly come with time and context.
What If...?'s Melding of Old, Older and New
This new Avengers roster combines the original six Avengers from the MCU, the original five from Marvel Comics, and a special What If...? twist, which is fitting for the show.
What If...? as a show is based on a comic series of the same name — an anthology of stories from other universes where one difference led to a butterfly effect of more and more changes.
Thus, it makes sense to see a team with four original MCU Avengers, three original Marvel Comics Avengers, and one that brings in the lore developed in What If...?'s first season.
What If...? Season 2 premieres on Disney+ on December 22, with one new episode releasing each day through December 30.
Gillian Blum has been a writer at The Direct since 2022, reporting primarily from New York City. Though she covers news from across the entertainment industry, Gillian has a particular focus on Marvel and DC, including comics, movies, and television shows. She also commonly reports on Percy Jackson, Invincible, and other similar franchises.
