Marvel's What If...? Season 2 Brought One Scrapped Avengers Movie Idea To Life

Marvel's animated anthology series, "What If...?," took us down a handful of avenues, some of which saw an alternative "Avengers" timeline see a different team assemble for the Battle of New York. In Season 2, Episode 5, "What if...? Captain Carter Fought the Hydra Stomper," it's Peggy (Hayley Atwell), not Captain America, taking the lead against the Chitauri, with all the original crew aside from the Hulk. Instead, the big green machine is swapped out for someone a little smaller, but still lethal in her own right: second-generation Wasp, Hope Van Dyne. While the show's creators had their reasons for including her in the roster for this episode, the interesting coincidence is that The Wasp was initially planned to be the central character for "The Avengers" when Joss Whedon was on the original 2012 film.

According to the book, "The Story of Marvel Studios: The Making of the Marvel Cinematic Universe," Whedon wanted to cast Zooey Deschanel as Hope Van Dyne, who was set to be the film's main female character. Producer Jeremy Latcham said in the book, "It was all about The Wasp. He wanted to cast Zooey Deschanel. [Wasp] was the funniest character in the whole movie, and well-written." The reason for her inclusion in this particular episode is a brilliant one, and it all comes down to the "What If...?" champion of the show, Captain Carter.

In a brilliant breakdown from head writer and executive producer of "What If...?," A.C. Bradley, it turns out revealed that The Wasp zipped into action alongside the Avengers thanks to Captain Carter's impact on this timeline's history. Bradley explained on X, "Since Captain Carter — a woman — ended WW2, the feminist movement occurred immediately after the war. This had a ripple effect across society, leading to more female SHIELD agents, heroes, & women in positions of authority. (Check out the Strike Team at min 12)."

This Captain's bravery led to others following in her footsteps, some even sooner than the main MCU timeline had them do. Bradley added, "Since Peggy Carter wasn't around to found SHIELD, that responsibility fell to Hope's parents, Hank and Janet, and also Bucky and his good friend, Howard Stark. All this led to Hope taking on the Wasp mantle earlier."

Of course, with two "Avengers" films on the way, there's no telling if Evangeline Lily will end up joining as one of Earth's Mightiest Heroes in the future, and finally, after all this time, part of "What If...?" doesn't even need to be asked anymore.