Marvel Studios made headlines again today when Variety announced that Yahya Abdul-Mateen II would be playing the role of the superhero Simon Williams AKA Wonderman. There have been plenty of rumors about Wonderman joining the MCU and Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige is said to be a huge fan of the character, with some anecdotes saying that Wonderman and Nova are his favorites. But now fans no longer have to worry about the rumors because the casting is here and Marvel did one heck of a job with this one.
This Is Abdul-Mateen’s third comic franchise. He initially played Black Manta in the first Aquaman film and is supposed to reprise his role in a sequel due out next year. He then joined the cast of the HBO hit series Watchmen as Cal Abar AKA Dr. Manhattan. Abdul-Mateen has really shown himself to be a fan of comics and comic properties. GIven Wonderman’s power set and Feige’s love for the character in tandem with Abdul-Mateen’s acting ability, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Marvel push his character as a leader of future Avengers teams.
Wonder Man is set to receive his own show on Disney+ and the show is being developed by Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton with Brooklyn 99 writer Andrew Guest doing the story. Variety also suggests he may direct the show, but that’s if time allows with all the other Marvel projects he’s also working on, including Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and the eventual sequel to Shang Chi. But who is Simon Williams? Here’s what Variety had to say.
“In the comic books, Williams is the son of a wealthy industrialist whose company, Williams Innovations, is run out of business due to competition from Stark Industries. In desperation, Simon turns to Baron Zemo, who gives Simon superpowers and directs him to infiltrate and then betray the Avengers. Eventually, however, Simon joins the Avengers in earnest, and is even a founding member of the spin-off team, the West Coast Avengers. However, it’s unclear how much or little of this storyline will make its way into the series.”
Wonder Man is going to be a key part of the Marvel future and they couldn’t have cast someone better. Abdul-Mateen II has proven he loves this content and will give it his all. Fans are in for a treat when this series drops on Disney+ and BSO Entertainment will be sure to keep you up to date on all the latest info from Marvel and around the entertainment world.