Rating: TV-14 | Episodes: 8 | Runtime: 30 minutes
Release Date: January 27th, 2026 (USA)
Studio: Marvel Studios / Disney+
Creator(s): Destin Daniel Cretton & Andrew Guest

Sometimes different can also be great.

Who better to create (alongside showrunner Andrew Guest) a television show starring Ben Kingsley’s Trevor “The Mandarin” Slattery than the director of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings? Sure, Destin Daniel Cretton has since gone and completed the new Spider-Man entry Brand New Day, but there’s something nice about keeping a connection to the material—no matter how silly it is or the fact that Cretton himself came to the character after Shane Black.

The Marvel One-Shot All Hail the King is one of my favorite pieces in the MCU puzzle, so I was always going to be excited to see Kingsley get back into the fray. That he does so alongside Yahya Abdul-Mateen II only made “Wonder Man” more enticing. And it was going to be a smaller, more character-driven story that wasn’t hinging on a “big bad” or Avengers-level destruction? That’s exactly what this franchise needs after a decade-plus of stagnant over-saturation.

Because what’s the problem with origin movies these days? They always find themselves unable to focus on the hero since they’re too preoccupied with advancing a mythology that he/she shouldn’t be a huge part of anyway. So, strip it down. Focus on a struggling actor desperate to hide his abilities so as not to be uninsurable on a film set (Abdul-Mateen II’s Simon Williams) and an industry pariah desperate to shake his criminal past for one more chance.

Good on Cretton and Guest for playing with the formula too and not just making who Simon can become into the titular hero. Give the history of that character some flavor by having it be an in-world artifact in need of sprucing up. Go meta with the MCU concept of adaptation and let the character be inspired by the IP rather than having the IP dictate the character yet again. I know a lot of people hated the “Mandarin” reversal, but I loved its subversive wink.

It’s a perfect mirror between fiction and reality. Just as Wonder Man is betrayed by best friend Barnaby in the movie Simon and Trevor hope to act in, they too are embroiled in a situation that risks their own fast-forming relationship. Simon has secret powers the Department of Damage Control (DODC) wants to curb and Trevor has access to help them do so in exchange for his freedom (he never finished his jail sentence). What happens when the truth comes out?

That’s the plot. That’s it. Can their friendship overcome the betrayal? Can they escape the watchful eye of DODC Agent Cleary (Arian Moayed)? Can they overcome the odds stacked against them to hit the big time and be the stars their acting talent deserves? Add a fun bottle episode for narrative clarity (starring Byron Bowers’ “Doorman”) and a couple cameos playing absurd versions of themselves (Josh Gad and Joe Pantoliano) and it’s easy to enjoy the ride.

Sure, there’s still some fantastical superhero chaos (Simon can’t really control his powers, so the slightest tremor in his psyche can explosively manifest around him) with one very memorable jolt of violence, but this is more about an insecure loner with a chip on his shoulder discovering the benefits of opening up and being vulnerable for once in his life. It’s about finding a friend and remembering what it means to trust someone implicitly no matter the consequences.

Is it confusing to be called a mini-series only to then be renewed for a second season? Yes. Especially since the whole “Marvel Spotlight” banner was created to designate storylines that stood alone from other MCU threads. But the post-Endgame landscape has been pretty inconsistent overall with numerous pivots away from and towards whatever is currently sticking to Kevin Feige’s wall. It’s been a bit of a circus, but “Wonder Man” serves as a nice, low stakes balm.

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(L-R): Simon Williams/Wonder Man (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and Trevor Slattery (Sir Ben Kingsley) in Marvel Television’s WONDER MAN, exclusively on Disney+. Photo Courtesy of Marvel Television. © 2026 MARVEL.