Scarlet what if

Black Widow plays a crucial role in What If? The episode focuses on a hypothetical scenario in which Earth's mightiest heroes, The Avengers, are being systematically murdered one by one. Once he is thwarted, Asgardian God of Mischief Loki becomes the ruler of Earth, effectively undoing the plot of the first Avengers movie. One of the most notable aspects of What If? Clearly, Marvel isn't afraid to pull out all the stops to ensure continuity.

On the face of it, this makes Scarlett Johansson's absence seem slightly suspicious. Coupled with her lawsuit following the release of Black Widow , some are understandably speculating that her absence may be the result of an acrimonious split with Disney.

As it turns out, however, there is a much more reasonable explanation for Johansson's failure to return for What If? And WandaVision. WandaVision was a psychological journey into the mind of Wanda Maximoff, as writer Jac Schaeffer took viewers for a 9-episode sitcom ride that led to that heartbreaking finale.

However, even in the world of endless possibilities enabled by What If…? Marvel Studios is a bit reluctant when it comes to showing superhero romance on-screen and it seems like Phase Four will be missing a lot of the couples that made up that aspect of the MCU.

Naturally, it helps to have Paul Bettany come back to play Vision to drive home the idea that this is the same story fans have lived before, because ever since the couple gained more importance in Avengers: Infinity War it always felt like there was a lot more to say about their relationship. Even despite the drastically shortened format, What If…?

Just like Wanda, eventually, Vision sees past his own mistake rather quickly in this case and sacrifices himself so that the few remaining Avengers can stand a chance at saving the world, because deep down he knows that the Wanda he loved was already gone. Warning: contains spoilers for Darkhold Alpha 1! Though the series is currently concerned with a familiar villain tying the separate stories together, it's possible there's a greater force at work. There are enough similarities between the darkest timelines viewed in What If..?

The Darkhold contains the arcane knowledge of an ancient demon named Chthon, and some of the most powerful spells in comics. Those reading from its pages forfeit their souls in exchange for untold power, with Chthon then free to use them to advance his own interests.