Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has made the jump from DC, where he played the villain Black Manta in Aquaman, to Marvel Studios, where he’ll lead its upcoming Wonder Man series. The new show arrives at an interesting time for Marvel. The big screen movies continue to underperform, and there’s an effort to reduce output. Wonder Man has been completed since 2024, but will finally hit Disney+ in January 2026.
Interestingly, the new trailer mixes in questions about “superhero fatigue”, as the footage focuses on a celebrated director (played by Zlatko Burić, recently the Trumpian leader of Boravia in Superman) who has announced plans to remake the movie Wonder Man for a new audience sick of superhero movies.
When the question of casting pops up, the scene cuts to a wide-eyed Abdul-Mateen, who plays newly-powered hero and Hollywood actor, Simon Williams.
Also in the cast are Ben Kingsley, Demetrius Grosse, Ed Harris, and Arian Moayed. Kingsley is reprising his role as washed-up actor Trevor Slattery. Episodes have been directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, Tiffany Johnson, James Ponsoldt, and Stella Meghie.
Wonder Man looks like the most meta Marvel series yet.
