Marvel's What If...? shows a side of Nick Fury that makes him question the Avengers Initiative. Samuel L. Jackson's Fury first entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) in Iron Man back in 2008. Around the same time, Marvel also redesigned the character across their existing mediums to be inspired by Jackson's likeness. He most recently appeared in 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home, although it won't be the last time that audiences see him in the role. Jackson lends his voice for What If...? and he will also be playing Fury in the live-action Disney+ series Secret Invasion.

The upcoming animated anthology is set to tell the stories of multiple characters across the MCU. The series will look back at past events, but will also explore what could have happened if things went differently. By changing pivotal moments in the MCU, the plot will follow what obstacles they could have encountered. The show debuts on August 11 on Disney+. Original reports indicated that the animated series would be ten episodes long, although one episode had to be pushed due to coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic delays. What If...? will consist of nine episodes total, all of which are part of Phase 4 of the MCU. A second season is already in development.

Related: Why Tom Holland Isn't Returning As Spider-Man In What If…?

Slashfilm interviewed What If...? director Bryan Andrews and head writer A.C. Bradley about the animated anthology. Since the season was only initially planned to be 10 episodes long, the creatives behind the series had to decide what stories to include first. Bradley explained that they narrowed it down by looking at the characters and how they could explore interesting sides of them. See below for Bradley's full statement:

"When it came to creating episodes of What If…?, the first thing we always looked at was the characters. We went through each of these iconic heroes, and my favorite thing was trying to find the human behind the hero, the heart underneath the shield and behind the arc reactor, and showing them in a new light. So with a character like Nick Fury, who’s always, to be honest, the original BAMF, it was like, let’s show him have a crisis of faith. Let’s see him wonder if the Avengers Initiative was not going to work. Let’s have that episode where he has to look around and be like, am I doing the right thing? And go from there."

The Watcher in What If

The character of Fury was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in 1963. His first appearance was in Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos #1. Fury was originally a CIA agent but he became relatively similar to James Bond when S.H.I.E.L.D. was created. Ever since the character has taken on Jackson's likeness, he has only become more popular and recognizable in pop culture. He has always been known for his leadership, although Fury has been made into an anti-hero in some instances.

When it comes to Marvel, there are so many characters, stories, and variations of both. It makes sense that Bradley would place so much importance on the characters. Fury is typically seen as the leader who always knows what to do next and is always several steps ahead of the enemy. However, having him doubt the Avengers Initiative in What If...? will provide a bit more depth to a character that has been so steadfast over the course of the MCU. This isn't the end of Marvel's venture into animated shows, so audiences will have to wait to see what else is up the company's sleeve.

Next: What If...?: Every Reveal From The Toy Leaks

Source: Slashfilm

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