In a rather surprising reversal, Marvel has cancelled ‘Wonder Man’ after one season, despite previously announcing that the Disney+ series would return for Season 2.
Marvel officially renewed ‘Wonder Man’ in March, with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen, Aquaman) expected to return as superpowered actor Simon Williams alongside Ben Kingsley (Gandhi, Iron Man 3) as Trevor Slattery. However, the studio has now changed its mind and scrapped the planned second season.
Abdul-Mateen responded to the news on Instagram, thanking those who watched and supported the series.
“Word just dropped that Wonder Man won’t be coming back for Season 2,” he wrote. “(And if you don’t knowww, now ya knoww!) That’s life, right? Everything will shake out. I wanted to say thank you to everybody who WATCHED the show, ENJOYED the show, and SHARED that they enjoyed the show in some way or other.”
The actor continued:
“The show worked. And that’s my favorite thing about it. I could see it on the faces of the Youtube reactors (because I watched along with y’all this time. Shoutout to y’all) and I can see in the messages I get saying how the show reminded some of you not to give up, and I feel it in the genuine love shared when I bump into some of you all during the day. So, thinking of you all today. I’m glad we got to be a part of something cool. Thank you for watching… And uhh… See you at the EMMYS.”
That final comment refers to Abdul-Mateen’s Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his performance as Simon.
The eight-episode first season launched on Disney+ in January and recorded 618 million minutes viewed during its opening week, placing it eighth on Nielsen’s ranking of streaming originals. Apparently, that was not enough to convince Marvel to continue with its previously announced plans.
No reason has been given for the decision to reverse the renewal. However, cancellation does not necessarily mean Simon Williams or Trevor Slattery have taken their final bows. Both characters remain part of the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe and could potentially appear in other films or series.
Still, cancelling a show is one thing. Renewing it, telling everyone it is returning, and then cancelling it four months later feels particularly brutal.
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