What If…? Season 3: Russell Crowe, Jake Gyllenhaal, Lupita Nyong’O, and More OG Stars Who Ditched MCU Show
- What If...? season 3 has received mixed reviews from critics and fans.
- Season 3 is the finale episode of the animated anthology.
- Some actors actors did not return to voice their characters due to various reasons.
Marvel Studios’ third and final animated anthology series, What If…? starring Jeffrey Wright as the narrator, premiered recently. Once again and for the last time, the series explores the alternate timelines in the multiverse and showcases to fans what would happen if major moments across the multiverse occurred differently.
The series first premiered in August 2021 as part of Phase Four, but the second and third seasons premiered as part of Phase Five in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Upon release, it received a positive response from the audience for voice acting, animation, creative storylines, and more. However, the final season, saw a number of original actors not returning to voice their characters.
Original Marvel actors did not return to voice their characters on What If…? Season 3
Marvel Studios’ third and final season for the critically acclaimed animated anthology series What If…?, premiered on December 22, 2024, and according to reports, it had some of the most jaw-dropping cameos from Ghost Rider to The Punisher and more.
Collider describes the season as the ‘show’s bleakest yet,’ adding that it seems intentional. The publication explained that the final season of What If…? seemed like a reflection of the real world where everything is moving in a bleaker direction. The topics picked for the final season of What If…?; were greed, power, violence, prejudice, and subjugation, which is something that the series had already covered earlier. However, the animation of the series has been highly appreciated.
One thing fans noticed in What If…? season three was that a lot of Marvel actors did not return to the studios to voice their characters for the series. Thus, Marvel Studios replaced their voices with other actors’ voice. Like, for example, Rachel Weisz, who played Melina Vostokoff in the live action, was replaced by Kari Wahlgren to voice the character in Episode 1 of What If…? season 3.
Brittany Adebumola voiced actress Lupita Nyong’O’s Nakia, Piotr Michael voiced Ray Winstone, who played General Dreykov, and Kiff VandenHeuvel voiced Jeff Bridges’ Obadiah Stane in What If…? Season 3. Other actors who did not return included Jeff Goldblum, Russell Crowe, Mads Mikkelsen, Colm Feore, Christopher Eccleston, Jake Gyllenhaal, Danai Gurira, Michelle Yeoh, and Benedict Wong.
The majority of the actors who did not return to voice their fan-favorite characters for the animated anthology series had scheduling conflicts and were obligated to fulfill their jobs. Despite the original actors not returning for What If…?, the actors who replaced them were highly lauded for their voice acting.
ScreenRant, in its review for the third and final season of What If…?, noted that it was underwhelming because it felt like the studios picked the wrong storylines to explore. They noted that season 3 felt like a case of high-gloss missed opportunities.
X-Men ’97‘s Beau DeMayo slams MCU’s What If…? Season 3
The Creator of X-Men ’97 Beau DeMayo was also one of the people who shared his view on the recent release What If…? He wrote on his social media stating, ‘#whatif season 3 yikes just yikes.’ In another tweet, he explained,
It has no substance and feels like fanfic. The dialogue is flat and so obvious, and some of the premises are just weird. I’d watch more to give notes on how it could’ve easily been done better, but I have some water to watch boil.
The creator of the X-Men ’97 movie shared his view on Matthew Chauncey taking over the head writer duties from the creator for the final season of What If…?. He wrote on his social media that season 3 is also the season where AC Bradley completely stepped back for Chauncey to take over.
It should be recalled that Marvel Studios dismissed DeMayo just ahead of X-Men ‘97’s debut after allegations of s**ual misconduct were brought to light.
Following his departure, the creator has been very vocal about the project and has gone on to reveal the canceled plot lines and his plans with various projects in regard to X-Men before he was asked to leave.
What If…? Season 3 is streaming on Disney+.
