Wonder Man is now streaming on Disney+, giving fans the chance to finally watch and share their thoughts on the latest Marvel Spotlight series.
The show is already "Certified Fresh" with critics on Rotten Tomatoes at 90%, and an early Audience Score has also been generated: 90%. That makes it the highest-rated MCU series on the platform, topping Moon Knight (88%), Ms. Marvel (80%), Daredevil: Born Again (78%), and more.
The score will likely evolve and change in the coming days, but this is a terrific start and suggests Marvel Studios made the right decision to release all episodes at once and to tell a very different type of superhero story.
Wonder Man doesn't end with the promise that "Simon Williams Will Return." That leaves us in the dark about the character's MCU future, including whether Season 2 will happen. Simon is powerful enough to join The Avengers, but he doesn't seem interested in becoming a hero.
During a recent interview with Refinery29, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II opened up about Simon Williams' journey. "Anxiety is kind of new to me too. I understand what it’s like. As an actor, a part of our job is to be able to identify the anxieties and to be able to use our tools to decrease it and then to work through it, to 'tolerate our discomfort.'"
"It was really gratifying, and sometimes scary at the same time, to show that vulnerability, to show that anxiety, to show what it looks like to just not be sure of myself at all but still have to proceed, and to have the camera be right here while I’m doing that. To be feeling something before a scene and to realise, 'Oh, yeah that’s right, this is what Simon is feeling.' Oh, OK so I’m right at home so just share it."
A full look at Simon suited up as Wonder Man has also been revealed, along with a new poster and behind-the-scenes photos shared by Abdul-Mateen II. Check those out below.
Wonder Man is created by Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Spider-Man: Brand New Day) and Andrew Guest (Community, Hawkeye).
The series stars Emmy Award winner Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Simon Williams and Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley, who reprises his role as Trevor Slattery following appearances in Iron Man 3, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and All Hail the King. Arian Moayed, X Mayo, Zlatko Burić, Olivia Thirlby, Byron Bowers, and Demetrius Grosse also feature.
Wonder Man follows aspiring Hollywood actor Simon Williams, who is struggling to get his career off the ground. During a chance meeting with Trevor Slattery, an actor whose biggest roles may be well behind him, Simon learns that legendary director Von Kovak is remaking the superhero film "Wonder Man."
These two actors, at opposite ends of their careers, doggedly pursue life-changing roles in this film as audiences get a peek behind the curtain of the entertainment industry.
All eight episodes of Wonder Man are now streaming on Disney+.