Warning: This article contains spoilers for What If…? season 3.
Several alternate Avengers teams have been introduced to theMCUin the animatedWhat If…?series, and any number of them could now make the move to live-action in Phase 6.What If…?, which ran for three seasons between 2021 and 2024, explored a huge variety of vibrant and complex alternate realities across the MCU’s multiverse, many of which were inhabited by their own versions of Marvel’s Avengers team. TheAvengers will return to the MCUin 2026’sAvengers: Doomsday, but it might not be only the MCU’s own team who makes an appearance.
Over the duration of its three seasons,What If…?introduced eleven newmultiversal superhero teams to the MCU, each of which would be great to see make the move to live-action inAvengers: Doomsdayor 2027’sAvengers: Secret Wars.They could join the MCU’s official Avengers team, the line-up of which hasn’t yet been revealed, in battle against Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom. This would give more weight to their often-brief appearances inWhat If…?, and help to makeDoomsdayandSecret Warsthe most thrilling adventures possible before they bring the MCU’s Multiverse Saga to an end.
11Nick Fury’s Other First Avengers Team
What If…? Season 1, Episode 3, “What If… The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?”
The first Avengers team seen inWhat If…?season 1 was one formed by Nick Fury which was very reminiscent of theoriginal Avengers team in the MCU. Fury planned to bring together Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow and the Hulk, prior to his discovery of Captain America, butHank Pym as the Yellowjacket eliminated each of these original MCU heroes. This didn’t stop Fury, however, as he sought new heroes to replace those less fortunate, bringing together a brand-new Avengers team to take on Loki.
Nick Fury’s other Avengers team included a reawakened Captain America, Captain Marvel and, followingWhat If…?season 1’s finale, a hardened variant of Black Widow from a dead world ravaged by Ultron.It’s very possible that Fury could have tracked down other heroes to join the fight, too, perhaps including other elite SHIELD agents and his Skrull allies. This team were their universe’s original Avengers line-up, so it would be great to see them debut in live-action to get more development.
10Zombie-Fighting Avengers
What If…? Season 1, Episode 5, “What If… Zombies?!”
While most of the original Avengers were quickly taken down by theQuantum Virus in the reality ofWhat If…?season 1, episode 5, many other heroes took their place as a pseudo-Avengers team in this terrifying world.Bruce Banner acted as the viewer’s eyes in this story, introduced to an Avengers team consisting of Spider-Man, the Wasp, the Winter Soldier, Okoye, Happy Hogan, Sharon Carter and Kurt. Most of these heroes lose their lives during various altercations with zombies and a morally corrupt Vision, leaving only three to continue the fight.
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T’Challa’s Black Panther and a body-less Scott Lang joined Peter Parker’s Spider-Man on his mission to Wakanda at the end ofWhat If…?season 1, episode 5, but their survival was thrown in doubt by the arrival of a zombified Thanos. It’s unclear how connectedMarvel Animation’s upcomingMarvel Zombiesserieswill be to thisWhat If…?episode, butotherheroes, including Ms. Marvel, Ironheart, Shang-Chi, Yelena Belova and Kate Bishop, among others, will form a new team. It would be fantastic to see these teams appear in live-action.
9Guardians Of The Multiverse
What If…? Season 1, Episode 9, “What If… The Watcher Broke His Oath?”
The most powerful superhero team inWhat If…?season 1 was brought together by Uatu the Watcher to take on Infinity Ultron, who had waged war across the entire multiverse. TheGuardians of the Multiversecomprised the separate core heroes introduced throughout the season, including Captain Carter, Strange Supreme, T’Challa’s Star-Lord, Killmonger’s Black Panther, Party Thor, and variants of Gamora and Black Widow.Enhanced with knowledge from each of their universes and Strange Supreme’s magic, the Guardians of the Multiverse were formidable.
Guardian of the Multiverse
Doctor Strange Supreme
Benedict Cumberbatch
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Cynthia McWilliams
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It would perhaps make the most sense for the Guardians of the Multiverse to make their way into live-action inAvengers: DoomsdayandSecret Wars, thoughWhat If…?season 3 seemed to imply that several of these heroes had lost their lives. Captain Carter seemed to have formed a new Guardians of the Multiverse team alongside Kahhori, Storm’s Goddess of Thunder and Byrdie inWhat If…?season 3. Even so, it would still be brilliant to see veteran MCU stars return to portray theirGuardians of the Multiverse characters in live-action.
81988’s Avengers
What If…? Season 2, Episode 2, “What If… Peter Quill Attacked Earth’s Mightiest Heroes?”
What If…?season 2, episode 2 brought one of the most interesting and exciting Avengers teams into the MCU, comprising the superheroes of 1988.This team formed to battle a young Celestially-powered Peter Quill, and would be great to see translated into live-action, bringing back a number of iconic MCU stars from the franchise’s history.1988’s Avengers teamincluded familiar faces such as Bill Foster’s Giant-Man, Hank Pym’s Ant-Man, T’Chaka’s Black Panther, Bucky Barnes' Winter Soldier and Mar-Vell, who were brought together by Peggy Carter and Howard Stark of SHIELD.
Chris Pratt’s Peter Quill lost his Celestial powers are killing his father, Ego, in the 2014-setGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.What If…?‘syoung Peter Quill was delivered to his father as promised, and trained in how to use his formidable gifts.
It was brilliant to see a younger iteration of Thor also join this team, highlighting his elongated lifespan thanks to his Asgardian physiology. 1988’s Avengers also ended being supported by theyoung Peter Quilland Hope Van Dyne, who could grow into formidable superheroes.This team would give some lesser-used MCU stars, such as Laurence Fishburne, Atandwa Kani and Annette Bening, much more substantive rolesinDoomsdayandSecret Wars, and give them the chance to suit up as superheroes when they might never have expected to.
7The Avengers & Freak
What If…? Season 2, Episode 3, “What If… Happy Hogan Saved Christmas?”
Happy Hogan took center-stage inWhat If…?season 2, episode 3, as he became the savior of Christmas by inadvertently injecting himself with the Hulk’s blood and transforming into the purple Freak when Justin Hammer invaded Avengers Tower.With all the Hulk’s power and a level of intelligence that Bruce Banner could access for several years as the Hulk, Happy Hogan’s Freak was a great addition toWhat If…?and this universe’s Avengers team. Aside from Hogan’s inclusion, the Avengers were exactly the same as the team in the MCU’s main continuity.
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With Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and possibly more originalAvengers actors set to return forAvengers: Doomsday, and given Jon Favreau’s continuing strong relationship with Marvel Studios, this multiversal team could easily be seen in live-action in Phase 6.Favreau most recently appeared in 2024’sDeadpool & Wolverine, becoming the longest-running actor in the live-action MCU. Phase 6 could finally see him become a superhero in his own right, if his Freak variant is featured among the other members of the Avengers.
6Captain Carter’s Avengers
What If…? Season 2, Episode 5, “What If… Captain Carter Fought The Hydra Stomper?”
What If…?season 2, episode 5 revisited the universe of the series’ premiere episode, which saw Peggy Carter become a super-soldier and battle the Red Skull before finding herself returned in the present day.Following the same trajectory as the MCU’s Steve Rogers, this universe’s Captain Carter became the leader of an Avengers teamto fight during the Battle of New York, butthis version of the original Avengers teamwas slightly different. In a world where a woman became the first super-soldier, female heroes were far more prevalent.
This development allowed theWasp, perhaps Hope van Dyne’s iterationin 2012, to become a founding member of the Avengers alongside Captain Carter, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow and Hawkeye. It’s unclear exactly where Bruce Banner’s Hulk was in this timeline, butgiven the fact that Banner’s gamma experiment was an attempt to recreate Captain America’s transformation, it’s possible a woman becoming a super-soldier may have impacted Banner’s experiment. Captain Carter’s Avengers team would be great to see in live-action, though the Star-Spangled-Woman may have moved on since then.
51602’s Avengers
What If…? Season 2, Episode 8, “What If… The Avengers Assembled In 1602?”
Although not an official Avengers team, there are a selection of brilliant Renaissance era heroes who could come together to form a team fromWhat If…?season 2’s 1602-themed reality.This includes the likes of Forerunner Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Scott Lang, Tony Stark, Bruce Banner and Wanda Maximoff, and they could also be joined by a multiversal Captain Carter.Avengers: DoomsdayandSecret Warspromise to explore the weird and wonderful possibilities of the multiverse, and introducing this classic Avengers team would be a great way to accomplish this.
What If…?season 2, episode 8 was inspired by Marvel Comics’Marvel 1602storyline, which ran for eight issues in 2003 and introduced Elizabethan era versions of some of Marvel’s most notable characters, such as Nick Fury, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four and Spider-Man.
By weeding out the Forerunner,Captain Carter saved the 1602 universe from an incursion. This storyline connectedWhat If…?directly to the wider MCU narrative, as incursions are bound to be an important plot point inDoomsdayandSecret Warsafter the events ofSpider-Man: No Way Home, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madnessand other multiversal MCU projects. While tragic,it’s possible the 1602 universe could still see itself ravaged by an incursion, which may allow some of these heroes to jump into a live-action world.
4Mech Avengers
What If…? Season 3, Episode 1, “What If… The Hulk Fought The Mech Avengers?”
What If…?season 3 introduced one of the most powerful official Avengers teams the MCU has ever seen. Episode 1 saw Bruce Banner inadvertently create an army of Hulk monsters while trying to cure himself, kick-starting the Gamma War. In response,Iron Man adapted his Hulkbuster armorto create huge mech suits for each member of the Avengers, and the original team’s legacy heroes also received their own mech suits. The Mech Avengers were created, and this would be a very cinematic version of the Avengers team to see in live-action.
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Oscar Isaac
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The Mech Avengers were also able to combine each of their mech suits into one giant Mighty Avenger armor, allowing them to work as one.This would be incredible to see in live-action, though would perhaps eat up a lot ofAvengers: DoomsdayandSecret Wars’budgets. Led by Sam Wilson’s Captain America,What If…?‘sMech Avengers team could have provided insight into what theMCU’s official Avengers line-upwill be like, which spells good news for the likes of Moon Knight, Red Guardian and Shang-Chi, among others.
3The Avengers & Red Guardian
What If…? Season 3, Episode 3, “What If… The Red Guardian Stopped the Winter Soldier?”
Similarly to the Avengers ofWhat If…?season 2, episode 3, the team seen right at the end ofWhat If…?season 3, episode 3were exactly the same as the MCU’s original line-up, though had one different inclusion. After defecting to the United States following his adventure with Bucky Barnes’ Winter Soldier,Alexei Shostakov’s Red Guardian was approached by SHIELD and eventually became a founding Avengeralongside Black Widow, Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk and Hawkeye.
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Ignoring the fact that Howard Stark being saved would have seriously changed this Avengers team, the Red Guardian’s inclusion in this Avengers line-up was confusing. His powers are practically exactly the same as Steve Rogers', making him sort of redundant among Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, particularly given his adoration for the Russian way of life. Nevertheless,David Harbour is one of the most exciting additions to the MCU in recent years, so it would be great to see him return as a member of a multiversal Avengers teamfollowing his adventure in2025’s upcomingThunderbolts*.
2Emergence Alliance
What If…? Season 3, Episode 5, “What If… The Emergence Destroyed The Earth?”
Following the destruction of the Earth during theCelestial Tiamut’s emergence, it was interesting to find out that life still went on among the fragments of the planet.Spider-Man villain Mysterio and the nanite-controlled Vision waged war on the world, but a small team of heroes fought back against this tyranny, and, despite losing their lives, were eventually successful. The Alliance team was comprised of Ying-Nan, Wong, Okoye and Valkyrie, and they soon recruited Riri Williams to their cause, forming a new team that would be exciting to see move into live-action.
Dominique Thorne is set to reprise herBlack Panther: Wakanda Foreverrole of Riri Williams in the MCU’s upcomingIronheartseries, which is scheduled to premiere on Disney+ in June 2025.
None of these hardened heroes, aside from Riri Williams' Ironheart, have confirmed futures in the MCU, sointroducing their variants as the Alliance team in Phase 6 would be a great way to bring Michelle Yeoh, Benedict Wong, Danai Gurira and Tessa Thompson back. It would also be incredible to see a live-action version ofDominique Thorne’s Riri Williams with her Vision upgrades, as she is now one of the most powerful characters in the entire MCU. This could be a great way to lead into possible follow-ups to 2021’sEternals.
