WARNING: The following contains spoilers for What If...? Season 1, Episode 4, "What If... Zombies!?," streaming now on Disney+.
Since its premiere, each episode of What If...? has seen The Watcher take audiences through consistently darker realities. Now, the series has potentially reached its darkest point with the arrival of zombies. "What If... Zombies!?" takes the events of Avengers: Infinity War and twists them in a way that sees the heroes facing friends who have transformed into monsters. And while most of the actors reprised their roles for the episode, Tom Holland was a notable exception.
In the episode, Spider-Man has a different look from what has been shown in the films. Aesthetically, his suit is similar to the one from Captain America: Civil War, but his web-shooters are silver, and he dons Doctor Strange's Cloak of Levitation later in the episode. But the most drastic change is that instead of being voiced by Holland, Hudson Thames lends his voice talents to Peter Parker.
Since he was young, Thames has been a part of many different genres that range from family films to dramas. He's best known for his roles as Brian in The Secret Life of an American Teenager and Sage in Malibu Country. However, he has also appeared on the hit series, Mad Men, and provided his voice for the animated film, The Tale of Princess Kaguya.
In Episode 5 of What If...?, Peter Parker is one of the few superhero survivors of a zombie apocalypse that ravaged New York City. While the situation is undoubtedly somber and filled with loss, he makes sure to keep his youthful energy. This is best shown early in the episode when Peter shows off a zombie survival PSA, a video that perfectly encapsulates how he has handled such a traumatic situation using humor.
The video also gives fans an extended glimpse at Thames' voice, which begins as slightly deeper than Holland's but fluctuates to a higher pitch before falling back to a lower register. While the zombies arrive when Peter is still a teenager, the change in tone shows how the situation has matured him faster. Like other actors that replaced their live-action counterparts, Thames' previous body of work helps give the character a whole new dimension that maintains continuity between both versions.
The newest episode of What If...? will no doubt leave a lasting impression on fans thanks to the terrifying content within the episode. However, they can also expect some quality voice acting by Thames. While he doesn't sound exactly like Holland, the small variances in his voice maintain the multiverse's idea of things being the same while also vastly different.
To see Hudson Thames' Peter Parker in action, the newest episode of What If...? is streaming now on Disney+.
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