Fans of properties inspired by comic books know to keep their eye out for Easter eggs when they come to the screen. For a project like Marvel's What If...?, however, fans were treated to diverging paths in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That meant most fans were busy keeping their eyes open to just how each of the universes in the different episodes branched out from the main timeline they already knew.
Those branches provided for a lot of nods to the movies and gave fans plenty of familiar scenes with new twists. Thankfully, there were still plenty of Easter eggs hidden inside of the scenes for long-time fans of the MCU to spot. Some are easier to catch on a rewatch when fans aren't so caught up in the story.
10 Tonsberg Appears In Episode 1
Tonsberg is an interesting location in the MCU. The first episode of the series keeps the first glimpse at it the same for fans of the movies. It's where the Red Skull finds the Tesseract. In both Captain America: The First Avenger and Episode 1 of What If...?, it's hidden in a church.
Tonsberg, however, will go on to play a larger role in the MCU. The city goes on to become the place that Thor and Valkyrie bring the remaining Asgardians to after Thanos destroys most of their people. Tonsberg becomes New Asgard in Avengers: Endgame.
9 T'Challa's Jacket In Episode 2 Is Familiar
Though T'Challa and his parents have a great relationship in the MCU, it doesn't stop him from running away and wishing to see the universe in What If...?. Since T'Challa is the child from Earth taken by Yondu in Episode 2 instead of Peter Quill, much of his costume design is inspired by Peter Quill in the movies. It's also, however, has plenty of nods to his time as Black Panther in the MCU.
The jacket is purple, the same color his Black Panther suit flashes when it absorbs kinetic energy from an opponent. The collar of the jacket will also look familiar to fans. Instead of being modeled directly after Peter's jacket, it resembles the neckline of T'Challa's Black Panther suit as well. It acts as a subtle reminder of his other life.
8 T'Challa's Ship Isn't The Milano
In Guardians Of The Galaxy, Peter Quill's ship is named the Milano. As a child of the '80s, Peter had a crush on actress Alyssa Milano growing up, which is where the name comes from. T'Challa, however, chooses a different name for the ship he pilots.
Fans will spot that "Mandela" is the name of T'Challa's ship if they're paying attention in Episode 2. That's a nod to Nelson Mandela, an iconic political activist famous for his work as a South African anti-apartheid leader.
7 Phil Coulson Has A Unique Password In Episode 3
Phil Coulson's love of Captain America is well documented in the MCU, as well as in the Agents of SHIELD series, which may or may not be considered MCU canon anymore. When Black Widow has to get into SHIELD's files above her clearance level in Episode 3, she gets Coulson's password, which only reminds the audience of his admiration for the hero.
The password Colson uses is #stevestevesteveiheartsteve0704. The Steve in question is Captain America's Steve Rogers. The number sequence denotes his July 4th birthday.
6 Hope Is Killed In Odessa In Episode 3
When the big reveal in Episode 3 comes that Hank Pym is out for revenge, it provides the divergent point in the timeline for fans. Hope Van Dyne became a SHIELD agent in the early 2000s, something that doesn't happen in the MCU's timeline. She's also killed on a mission to Odessa in 2006.
Fans might find that interesting if they go back and rewatch Captain America: The Winter Soldier. That's the movie where Black Widow reveals that she was shot by the Winter Soldier while protecting a SHIELD asset in Odessa a few years earlier. While Black Widow never specifies the exact date of her mission, it appears that Hope got that mission instead, and she didn't get as lucky.
5 Peter Lists Sharon's Special Skills In Episode 5
In a great callback to the MCU's Spider-Man movies, the Peter Parker in Episode 5 spends a little time recording videos of his fellow heroes. This time, however, he's gives tips for surviving a Marvel world full of zombies and lists all of the special skills the heroes have.
Fans should take a second look at Sharon Carter's special skills. She isn't just a good spy; she's also great at eulogies. That's a bit morbid in a world full of zombies, but it's a callback to the reveal that she's Peggy Carter's niece. Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson only learned her last name when she gave Peggy's eulogy in Captain America: Civil War.
4 There's A Quadjet In Episode 5
Most of the time when the heroes need an aerial vehicle in the MCU, they're using one of SHIELD's quinjets. That's not the case when Vision sends the heroes to Camp Lehigh. He has them looking for a quadjet instead.
The quadjet hasn't been used much in the MCU, but fans might remember seeing one in Captain Marvel; it's the same ship Maria Rambeau, Carol Danvers, and Nick Fury outfit and use to fly to space. It's likely the quadjet is an earlier model than the quinjets that populate the movies and the television series Agents Of SHIELD.
3 Christine Everhart Appears In Episodes 4 And 6
In the fourth episode of the series, Stephen Strange catches a bit of a news broadcast. The reporter in that broadcast is voiced by Leslie Bibb, and with good reason: she's the same character Bibb plays in the MCU.
Christine Everhart first appeared in the Iron Man movies, but she's become the face of WHiH World News for the MCU. She also appears in Episode 6 in a nod to her first Iron Man appearance as one of the reporters at Tony Stark's press conference after Erik Killmonger saves him.
2 A Familiar Pineapple Shirt Appears In Episodes 7 And 9
Fans of Korg (who happens to be voiced by Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi) will remember his pineapple print shirt he wears while playing video games in Avengers: Endgame. It's the same shirt Waititi wore to Comic-Con before the movie was released. Eagle-eyed fans will spot a party-goer wearing a similarly designed shirt in Episode 7.
That's not all though. The character isn't someone who appears in a single shot at Thor's party. He can be spotted again using his phone to get pictures of the action going down in Episode 9.
1 President Rogers Is Sworn In During Episode 8
In the eighth episode of the series, the multiverses begin to connect thanks to Ultron gaining cosmic awareness with the Infinity Stones. He decides to take on the Watcher himself, and as they fight through the multiverse, the audience gets flashes of what's happening on several different worlds.
One of those worlds includes Ultron pausing in front of a news broadcast on an electronic billboard featuring Steven Rogers being sworn in as the US President. The moment is modeled after Captain America briefly becoming president in the comics as well.