Who Voices Black Widow In What If? - CBR

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for What If...? Season 1, Episode 3, "What If... The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes," streaming now on Disney+.

The latest episode of Marvel Studios' What If...? asks audiences to ponder, "What If...The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?" During the episode, Nick Fury and the Black Widow try to uncover the mystery of who is killing the Avengers one by one before they can form to stop Loki. During the opening scene, the show reenacts when Fury and Natasha see Tony in the donut in Iron Man 2. But when Romanoff speaks, fans may be surprised to learn that Scarlett Johansson isn't providing the voice for this animated iteration.

Much like Josh Keaton taking the place of Chris Evans as Captain America, voice actress Lake Bell is the talent bringing the Black Widow to life in What If...? Before voice acting, Bell has been seen in roles on sitcoms like New Girl and The League. She's also been a part of the live-action Adult Swim comedy Children's Hospital. In recent years she can be heard voicing characters in some of Hollywood's most popular projects.

RELATED: What If...? Season 1, Episode 3, 'What If... The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes,' Recap & Spoilers

Bell has been voicing since 2009, with her first credited voice role being in the game Prototype as Dana Mercer. She has since gone on to bigger projects that have been tied to both Marvel and DC. Most notably, she can be heard as Poison Ivy in the hit series Harley Quinn. There, her deliveries meld perfectly with Ivy's dry sarcasm. Of course, it also helps that a similar delivery can be heard in her role as Black Widow.

Bell's television resume continues with her role in Bojack Horseman as Katrina Peanutbutter, Mr. Peanutbutter's ex-wife. In that series, Bell lingers on the character's regret for marrying Mr. Peanutbutter, a quality that goes well with the Black Widow as she lives a life of regrets. She has also voiced Vanessa Fisk in Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse and Chloe in The Secret Life of Pets 2, which helps showcase her range in roles both large and small. However, while this is the first time a large audience has heard Bell voice the Black Widow, it isn't her first rodeo with the character.

RELATED: Marvel's What If...? Confirms The MCU's Deadliest Hero

In Robot Chicken, Bell voiced Black Widow for one of their skits. While it didn't garner a similar audience as What If...?, it serves as an early look at how Bell has evolved her voice to better fit the character. Now, like Keaton voicing Steve Rogers, Bell can give her own twist to the character while still capturing the essence of what makes Johansson's live-action turn so great.

There's no clear reason why Johansson didn't return to voice Black Widow. While her recent legal battle with Disney seems like an easy excuse, it could simply be scheduling conflicts or poor communication. Nevertheless, Lake Bell is a great choice for the role as she perfectly captures what it takes to be one of Russia's deadliest assassins.

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To see Earth's Mightiest Heroes fail to form in the MCU, the third episode of What If...? is streaming now on Disney+.

KEEP READING: Who Voices Tony Stark In Marvel's What If?