Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. may be off the air and no longer canon, but Clark Gregg is preparing to reenter the Marvel Cinematic Universe on What If...?'s latest episode.
This Wednesday's What If...? will see Loki arrive on Earth with a different tactic than in The Avengers, which will change the future MCU team in some major ways. And with the show flashing back to the movie that properly kicked off the shared universe, it's no surprise that Phil Coulson will be back in the mix -- and Gregg is thrilled to be stepping back into the fan-favorite role.
"It's not just a platitude — honestly, I felt pretty grateful at the end of The Avengers, even though it didn't turn out so well for my guy," Gregg told Entertainment Weekly. "And then the calls just kept on coming: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and then another season, another season... seven seasons. And then Captain Marvel and then What If...? and oh my gosh — I don't know how much I'm allowed to say, but to enjoy familiar faces, it's nice to see them."
"Things didn't work out so well for some of them in this particular universe. So I'm really grateful for what we've had — who's we? Me and my character. Oh my gosh, I've lost it," Gregg joked. "It's finally happened. [Laughs] I snapped. Anytime they call, and they've come up with some other way for him to be back involved, I'm thrilled. And I have to say, having kind of been first commandos through the door trying to bring this world to something like television, it's really a thrill to watch Loki and WandaVision and Falcon and Winter Soldier, just to see old friends and people I've worked with for years doing these beautiful, expanded universes on TV."
After appearing in multiple movies and starring in two One-Shots, Coulson was revived after his death at the hands of Loki for Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which promised to bring the MCU to TV with the oft-repeated phrase "It's all connected." But while numerous actors reprised their roles from the movies on the series, like Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury, Colbie Smulders' Maria Hill, and Jamie Alexander's Sif, Marvel Studios never treated the show as canon. And with the launch of the Disney+ shows, it's even clearer that Coulson is truly dead in the main MCU. But like the '90s set Captain Marvel, What If...? provides another fun way for Gregg to return as Coulson with undoing his sacrifice.
Phil Coulson returns this Wednesday on What If...?, available on Disney+.
Source: Entertainment Weekly