Why Captain America Wasn't On Nick Fury's Original Avengers List

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Marvel's What If...? episode 3, "What If...The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?"

In Marvel's What If...? episode 3, Captain America wasn't marked for death like the rest of the Avengers in its alternate MCU timeline because he wasn't on Director Nick Fury's original list of candidates for the Avengers Initiative. "What If...The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?" sees a mysterious assassin take out Fury's picks for the Avengers, killing them all before they even have a chance to assemble to protect the world. However, Steve Rogers was spared due to the fact that he wasn't on Fury's original Avengers list, serving as more of a bonus and surprise hero for the team.

In What If...? episode 3, Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury is in the midst of his "Big Week", in which Iron Man 2, Thor, and The Incredible Hulk all take place in the MCU's Phase 1 (in that order). However, the change in this alternate universe revealed by Jeffrey Wright's The Watcher is that Earth's Mightiest Heroes were picked off one by one before they could ever assemble. Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Hulk, and Black Widow were all killed by none other than a dark Hank Pym (who'd become his own Yellowjacket), seeking revenge against Fury for getting his daughter killed, as Hope van Dyne had become an agent of SHIELD in this universe taking after her mother Janet.

However, despite being the First Avenger, Captain America wasn't targeted by Pym due to the fact that he wasn't on Fury's original list of Avengers candidates. This was because he was still presumed dead after crashing in the Arctic and being frozen after battling the Red Skull during WWII. As a result, there wouldn't have been any reason for Fury to have him on his list. In the standard MCU timeline, Steve Rogers was essentially a bonus and surprise addition to the Avengers Initiative. Furthermore, as far as this alternate reality in What If...? is concerned, Captain America being on ice during "Fury's Big Week" and Pym's killing spree is something that worked in the director's favor. With Loki and the armies of Asgard having invaded and taken over the Earth by the episode's end, Fury went in search of new heroes to maintain the idea of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, eventually discovering the frozen Captain Rogers and having called Captain Marvel on his pager to help save the world as well.

While it should be noted that Thor was also an unknown quantity and wasn't on Fury's initial list either, his more active presence and attempts to retrieve his hammer during Pym's attacks made him a clear target, as Pym rightly believed that Fury would have no doubt brought him into the loop, leading to Thor being shot by Hawkeye thanks to Pym before Clint's own murder. In any case, the fact that Rogers and Thor weren't a part of the original Avengers Initiative and were essentially surprising (but welcome) additions to the first team is pretty interesting, and it's certainly an element that gets an intriguing spotlight in this episode of What If...?.

Thanks to Captain America essentially being a bonus member of the Avengers Initiative, he was able to maintain hope for the world alongside Fury and Captain Marvel in this alternate MCU timeline. Not only that, but he and Thor are definitely critical additions to the original team despite being surprises. Without them, it's doubtful that Earth's Mightiest Heroes would have been all that mighty, and Captain America in particular provided the crucial leadership qualities needed during the Battle of New York and all the subsequent times the world needed them to come together as Avengers to save the day.

More: Every Avengers & MCU Easter Egg In What If? Episode 3

Marvel's What If...? releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.