In another universe, Chadwick Boseman got to enjoy the awards he earned. To be sure, praise was heaped upon the actor for his breakout role as James Brown in Get On Up and for playing the titular superhero in the culture-defining Black Panther. But major nominations did not come in until after Boseman’s shocking death at age 43 in 2020. Boseman’s final two live-action performances, as an inspiring leader of a Vietnam platoon in Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods, and as an electric jazz musician in the film adaptation of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, earned nominations and victories for an Academy Award, a British Film Academy Award, and other top prizes. That trend continues with Boseman earning a Primetime Emmy Award for his final performance in his signature role. Boseman played Wakandan prince T’Challa one last time in a vocal capacity during the second episode of the Marvel Disney+ series What If…?. In “What If… T’Challa Was Star-Lord,” viewers glimpse an alternate reality in which Yondu and his Ravagers capture not Peter Quill, as seen in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, but T’Challa. Eventually taking the name Star-Lord, T’Challa leads a group of Ravagers that includes familiar faces like Nebula, Kraglin, Kree warrior Korath the Pursuer, and even a reformed Thanos. Although limited to just his voice, Boseman’s talents are on full-display. The episode retains the goofy humor that one would expect from a Guardians of the Galaxy story, complete with cameos by Howard the Duck and the Collector (and Korath actor Djimon Hounsou getting to display his comedic chops). But where Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord is a sarcastic and insecure bumbler, Boseman brings kindness and confidence to the character. The same empathy that drove T’Challa to listen to defeated enemies Zemo (from Captain America: Civil War) and Killmonger, instead of finishing them off, comes through as Star-Lord leads the Ravagers on a cosmic adventure against Thanos’ former henchmen, the Black Order.
