What happened to William in Invincible Season 4? Fans slam ‘fate worse than death’

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The latest episode of Invincible, Season 4 Episode 4, is now available. Mark (Steven Yeun) is reunited with his friend William, but William is acting very differently. This change isn’t related to Mark, Eve (Gillian Jacobs), or the danger posed by the Viltrumites.

The first three episodes of Invincible season four show Mark still struggling with difficult choices, but the recent battle with Conquest has made him much more ruthless when dealing with global dangers.

In space, Nolan (J. K. Simmons) is hesitant but agrees to help save the universe, even if it means going against his own kind. This leads him to Thaedus (Peter Cullen), who reveals he still possesses a remnant of the deadly Scourge Virus – the same one he almost used to destroy the Viltrumites.

At the conclusion of the first three episodes on Prime Video, it’s revealed that Eve’s powers are failing because she is pregnant. Meanwhile, William returns in Invincible Season 4, Episode 4 to support her, but he’s different than before.

What happened to William in Invincible Season 4?

You might have noticed a difference in William’s voice! That’s because the actor who originally voiced him for the first three seasons of Invincible, Andrew Rannells, has been replaced by Brandon Scott Jones.

While there’s no official explanation for the change, it’s probably because of the production schedule. Robert Kirkman mentioned that work on Invincible Season 4 started right after Season 3 finished, so they could keep up a steady pace.

Rannells has been keeping busy lately, with recent roles in the Netflix series Too Much and Another Simple Favor. He also reprised his role as Matthew in the final season of Big Mouth.

He’s also starring in the new film Miss You, Love You, and will appear in the Hulu comedy series Stay Tuned, which is currently being developed.

A major casting update for Season 4 is that Aaron Paul won’t be back as the character Powerplex. The actor, known for Breaking Bad, explained on the Kinda Funny Games podcast last November that the role had been emotionally challenging for him.

He explained that playing the character was emotionally exhausting. “Powerplex isn’t a simple role; he’s a troubled person dealing with a lot,” he said. “I really tried to understand what he was going through, but it was a difficult and uncomfortable experience for me.”

Paul shared that he really enjoys the superhero series, but had to stop watching. He explained, “It wasn’t that the show itself was bad—everyone working on it is incredibly talented. It just had a negative effect on me, and I couldn’t keep watching it.”

Kirman recently explained that scheduling is often the biggest factor. He told Radio Times that with live-action shows, scripts frequently need adjustments – like expanding a character’s part – to keep an actor involved long-term.

As a fan, I’ve always appreciated how animation allows for a bit more flexibility when sticking to the source material. It’s cool to see that with Powerplex – even though things change, he still shows up now and then, which is awesome!

It’s great to feature an actor like Aaron Paul in a substantial episode where he can really shine. However, it can be tricky to get the same actor to appear for just a short scene or two, largely due to their busy schedule.

It’s safe to assume there were similar reasons for Rannells’ departure as William. 

Invincible fans react to William’s new voice

Fans have been surprised and disappointed by the change in voice actors for William in Invincible Season 4, Episode 4, with many wishing they’d found someone who sounded more like the original actor, Rannells.

He’s not dead, but man, does he suffer a worse fate…
byu/ShuckU inInvincible

I was scrolling through Reddit and someone hit the nail on the head – it’s not that the character’s gone, it’s just… worse. Honestly, when I first heard him speak, I was so thrown! It just didn’t sound like him at all, and I couldn’t help but wonder why they couldn’t find someone who could at least try to sound more like Andrew Rannells? It was a really jarring change.

I’ve seen so many people saying they actually had to pause what they were watching just to figure out what was going on! One person said the voice was so unexpected they had to stop the episode, and another admitted they literally paused mid-episode to find out who this new guy was. It was that shocking!

Some feel the show relies too much on familiar character types, a trait it had previously steered clear of. Interestingly, Rannells actually complimented this change in a 2020 interview with Digital Spy.

I’m really looking forward to people seeing my character on ‘Invincible,’ because he’s more than just the typical gay sidekick. The writers gave him a lot to do, a strong storyline, and he’s a really interesting character overall, so I’m excited about that.

I was reading the Reddit discussion, and one person pointed out that the character felt a little too stereotypical. Someone else agreed he’d always been a bit that way, but they thought Rannells did a great job making him feel real and not offensive. Unfortunately, they didn’t feel the same way about Jones’s portrayal – it just didn’t quite work for them.

Someone else commented that the portrayal felt excessively stereotypical, bordering on homophobic. They appreciated that the character William was simply a geek who happened to be gay, and that his interests weren’t defined by his sexuality.

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2026-03-25 23:20