The director of Marvel's What If...?, Bryan Andrews, has stated how Chadwick Boseman's final performance as T'Challa in the upcoming series will be different than his take on the iconic character in Black Panther. In What If...?, audiences will be able to see vastly different and exciting takes on their favorite characters. Sticking with Phase 4's theme of the multiverse, this show will take viewers to new corners of the MCU, such as seeing Peggy Carter become the super solider Captain Britain instead of Steve Rogers becoming Captain America, Tony Stark being rescued by Killmonger, and T'Challa becoming Star-Lord instead of Peter Quill.
All of these multiverse events will be viewed by Jeffrey Wright's The Watcher, a character known for observing events that happen in the universe while not getting involved. Besides Wright, the show's other cast members include many MCU actors voicing their characters, like Boseman, Tom Hiddleston, Hayley Atwell, Karen Gillan, Sebastian Stan, Samuel L. Jackson, and Mark Ruffalo.
As reported by Deadline, Andrews, Wright, and scribe, A.C. Bradley, spoke in a press conference for What If...? about Boseman's final performance. Bradley points out that because he is a character that changes the world he is in, they wanted to see how he would change outer space. Wright mentioned how Boseman approached the role and what he brought to the character in his performances. Andrews then detailed how What If...?'s T'Challa will be different than Black Panther's. Read what he said below:
He was excited to play this particular version of T’Challa because it was different. Because it was a version of him playing the King, but the King without the mantel, the royalty and everything else that goes along with it. He could lighten it up and get more jokey with it. He was excited to bring back that flavor to T’Challa.
This may come as no surprise to MCU fans. Boseman was known to be a dedicated and humble man, and truly embodied the role of T'Challa/Black Panther. Now, while still playing T'Challa, we can see how that character would interact in space, an environment that is vastly different from Wakanda. Bringing his regal and powerful performance to Star-Lord, who is known to be full of jokes and is quite witty, will surely be something different yet enjoyable for MCU fans to watch. This animated show will also help establish even more of the multiverse, which seems to be more and more important to Phase 4 as it continues on.
It seems as though viewers will be able to see a completely different take on the beloved character of T'Challa than they have before. Boseman's final turn as T'Challa will surely be both emotional and exciting. What If...? is sure to please fans of the multiverse that the MCU is establishing. Fans can look forward to seeing a new spin on his character and many others when Marvel's What If...? hits Disney+ on August 11.
Source: Deadline