There is very little certain in the movie and TV industry right now, but if things go to plan we could be seeing a second season of Marvel's What If...? much earlier than many would have expected. According to the series producer Brad Winderbaum, we could be seeing more from the alternative side of the Marvel timeline as early as next year. On the recent press tour for the current season of the MCU's first animated venture, he also confirmed that if all goes well, then we could even see new episodes arriving each year after that.

Speaking to Collider, Winderbaum said, "As you know with animation, it takes a long time to produce. We were fortunate enough to get the green light on a second season early enough to have a chance to release it next year. We'll see what happens. Obviously, I don't want to predict the future with this new world we live in, but our intention is to make it an annual release."

It is true that things can change very quickly in the industry these days. When cinemas reopened a few months ago, it was a very tentative affair and while things seemed to be running smoothly for a short time, the cracks have soon begun showing. Many big productions have been hit by delays from positive Covid tests including Mission Impossible 7, productions have been moved from certain countries over fears that further lockdowns would impact filming, and some big movies have now stated to see their release dates sliding later into the fall.

In many ways, an animated series does have more of an ability to sidestep many Covid restrictions, with voiceover work being able to be completed remotely, but that does not mean they would escape completely unscathed when it comes to getting people together to complete some of the post production work and the animation itself.

Speaking earlier in the month, Winderbaum confirmed that despite being an animated series, What If...? will be just as important to the MCU as any of the live action movies and TV shows. "It's no coincidence that the show picks up right after Loki...The multiverse has erupted in every possible direction," Winderbaum said during one of the early press conferences for What If...? "I think that without going into great detail, I can tell you that What If...? - as a project, as a story that exists in the MCU - is as important as any other and is woven into that tapestry."

The first season of the show got underway with stories that turned Peggy Carter into the First Avenger, and Black Panther's T'Challa into Star-Lord, and upcoming episodes will see a dark take on Doctor Strange, Spider-Man hunting Marvel Zombies and more. Reviews have been positive for the series so far, and it taps into the current boom in animation properties that has seen many popular franchises branching out in that direction. With so many characters to play with, and so many more still to come, it is not surprising that Winderbaum is expecting this to become an annual event.