“Marvel’s What If…?” has been part of the Disney+ Marvel Cinematic Universe umbrella since very close to the start. It was the fourth official Marvel Studios present to launch on the then-burgeoning streaming platform again in 2021, following up “WandaVision,” “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” and “Loki” Season 1. The animated anthology sequence’ third and closing season premieres on December 22, 2024, mimicking the vacation launch window for “What If…?” season 2 in 2023.
Via its run, “What If…?” has tried to strike a tough steadiness between presenting true one-off alternate universe tales and tying into the bigger “Multiverse Saga” of the MCU. There have been recurring characters and regular storylines, even whereas the episode to episode arcs stay comparatively hypothetical and self-contained. Ultimately, it appears that evidently the present’s connective tissue to the grand MCU plot might have been the rationale for its finish after three seasons, not less than based on Marvel TV head Brad Winderbaum.
In a current interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Winderbaum defined a part of the reasoning for cancelling the animated sequence. “‘What If…?’ has at all times tied into the higher MCU and the Multiverse Saga,” Winderbaum defined. “And for causes that may grow to be clear within the subsequent couple of years, this was the suitable time to culminate the sequence from a narrative perspective.” It is also true that three seasons is a fairly respectable run for something animated within the fashionable streaming panorama — an extended run than another Marvel Studios Disney+ exhibits have but obtained.
What If…? might not be related to the MCU
In response to Brad Winderbaum, there is a compelling narrative cause why now’s the suitable time to wrap up “What If…?” Nevertheless, because of how muddled the MCU’s multiverse period has grow to be, that reasoning is not instantly clear.
Whereas a lot has occurred lately concerning the assorted “branches” of the so-called “Sacred Timeline,” the multiverse itself is not going wherever as a core narrative assemble, or not less than it would not appear to be. Kang the Conqueror was pushed apart because of controversy surrounding actor Jonathan Majors, however Robert Downey Jr. will likely be enjoying Physician Doom within the upcoming “Avengers: Doomsday.” It is nonetheless onerous to inform the place precisely the franchise goes in overarching phrases, but it surely additionally would make sense for Marvel Studios to begin shifting away from narratives about the multiverse explicitly and begin utilizing it extra as a justification for telling totally different sorts of tales.
That stated, there are absolutely different causes at play for the present’s cancellation. Animation is not low cost, and Disney hasn’t hidden the truth that the numerous “Star Wars” and Marvel streaming sequence launched over the past a number of years have been extremely costly — usually with out the commensurate payday. “What If…?” has been a fairly regular hit with critics and followers, but it surely additionally hasn’t earned the sky-high reward of different current Disney+ fare like “X-Males ’97” or “Agatha All Alongside.”
There might be different the reason why Marvel’s What If…? has been cancelled
Whereas Marvel is at all times retaining the overarching story of the MCU in thoughts, there are tons of things that go into any present being renewed or cancelled. If “What If…?” had obtained important consideration or been an enormous money cow for Disney+, I am positive the studio would have discovered a story cause to maintain it going. However even an organization as huge as Disney has restricted sources, and the animated wing of Marvel particularly has began going in numerous instructions currently.
The huge success of “X-Males ’97” probably made some of us at Marvel Studios rethink future TV initiatives. The present has no connection to the MCU in anyway, and for followers who merely could not sustain with all of the streaming sequence which have come out lately, that was sort of a promoting level. In the identical interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Winderbaum described one other upcoming animated undertaking, “Your Pleasant Neighborhood Spider-Man,” as “only a enjoyable experience,” emphasizing its comparatively impartial standing, which has similarities to that of “X-Males.”
“Eyes of Wakanda,” yet another upcoming animated sequence, will probably be extra immediately tied into the bigger MCU, however its angling, which Winderbaum described as “a narrative about conquest and nationwide identification,” makes it considerably distinct thematically, not less than in concept. By its very nature, “What If…?” is a much less centered present, making it doubtlessly much less of a match with Marvel’s upcoming animated slate.
As soon as once more, the third and closing season of Marvel’s “What If…?” will premiere December 22, 2024, on Disney+.