Why Marvel’s What If…? Starts With Hayley Atwell’s Captain Carter

Marvel Studios finally made its foray into the world of animation this week, with the premiere of the multiversal anthology series What If…? The show tells stories of alternate realities from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with the first episode focusing on Hayley Atwell‘s Peggy Carter getting the Super Soldier Serum instead of Steve Rogers. There are a lot of different stories on the way, but the choice to start with Captain Carter is an important one, especially since she’ll be back in other episodes later this season and in Season 2.

What If…? executive producer Brad Winderbaum spoke with ComicBook.com‘s Brandon Davis about the new Marvel series, and he explained why Peggy was the ideal subject to help kick off the anthology.

“Peggy was top of mind early on,” Winderbaum said. “In Bryan Andrews’s animatic that helped sell the show, there’s a scene between Steve and Peggy in the ’40s and part of it is that everyone loves Peggy Carter. Certainly behind the scenes. I mean, everyone loves the character and we’re always trying to think about ways to use her. But also Hayley. You’re excited to work with Hayley. So for many reasons, it became a focal point for us early on. And then, the characters, like everything else, they kind of take on a life of their own. They tell you where they want to go, when you’re doing it right anyway. That’s what happens. And it turns out Peggy has a lot to say. And a lot to do in What If…? world.”

Both Peggy Carter and King T’Challa will have a recurring role in the first season of What If…?, with the latter appearing in four episodes. Captain Carter, as seen in the premiere, will have an interesting relationship with The Watcher, the show’s narrator.

Based on the events of the premier, it seems like Captain Carter will have a unique relationship to the Multiverse has a whole, having been sent into space thanks to the Tesseract. Perhaps she met up with The Watcher while on her journey?

What did you think of the first episode of Marvel’s What If…? Are you excited to see more of Captain Carter in the future? Let us know in the comments!