Ahead of its anticipated panel at New York Comic Con on Saturday, Marvel Television released a new teaser trailer for the TV series Wonder Man. Starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen, The Get Down) and Ben Kingsley (Iron Man 3, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), the series is a tonally unique take on the comic hero set in Tinseltown. View the preview below.

The short clip positions the series as a tongue-in-cheek shot at the industry’s alleged “superhero fatigue,” with an out-of-retirement director seeking to resurrect a forgotten character with the remake of the movie Wonder Man. Akin to Apple TV+’s The Studio, the series pokes fun at Hollywood’s avant-garde attempts to reconceptualize these once “nerd culture” characters for the modern world, or at least revive a franchise as an easy cash grab. The final scene shows Abdul-Mateen, a struggling actor, watching as the director is asked if he’s thought about casting the lead role.

Wonder Man, much like Marvel’s recent TV projects, endured creative changes and outside challenges over the past three years. First announced in the summer of 2022, Destin Daniel Cretton was attached as executive producer with Andrew Guest (Community, Hawkeye) as head writer. Cretton directed the sprawling Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Kingsley and Mateen II were announced as leads the following months, with production set for 2023. Unfortunately, the dual labor strike paused production, with many speculating whether the series would continue.

mxdwn reported in the fall of 2023 that the series was still moving forward despite some changes behind the scenes, including Cretton’s departure from directing the Avengers film originally set to highlight the multiversal villain, Kang the Conqueror. The series also added cast members Demetrius Grosse (The Rookie, Justified) and Lauren Glazier (The Chicago 8, Class).

Filming proceeded, but suffered a surprising blow when a crew member died in an accident on set in February of 2024. Production wrapped that summer as Disney was subsequently fined for the crew member’s unfortunate death in August.

Now, with the new teaser, months before its original release window in December, Marvel Studios announces the show will finally bow in January of next year. For more details on the series, tune in here for mxdwn’s reporting on New York Comic Con tomorrow.

Who was originally cast to play Wonder Man?

While Abdul-Mateen II is set to portray Simon Williams, aka Wonder Man, in the series, another actor was set to helm the role in the MCU. James Gunn (Peacemaker, Guardians of the Galaxy), the current co-director of the new DCU, wanted to introduce the West Coast Avenger in space with the Guardians of the Galaxy.

According to IGN, Gunn planned to have the character make a cameo appearance in Vol. 2, by none other than Firefly actor Nathan Fillion. Fillion and Gunn are close friends, with the director having cast him in almost every film he’s directed. He recently starred as Guy Gardner in this summer’s hit Superman, as well as Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Gunn changed his mind about the role after realizing he would be limiting Fillion’s opportunity for a larger arc within the MCU.

Instead of the on-screen cameo, Gunn opted to showcase Fillon as Wonder Man’s alter ego, the actor Williams, on a movie poster, according to IGN. The poster was set to appear in a scene on Earth, but that scene was eventually cut from the final edit.

While the scene never made it to the big screen, IGN reports Gunn would share the posters on his social media.

“I think we can consider them canon for the MCU, and I hold onto hope that Simon Williams will rise again!!” Gunn stated regarding the poster via IGN. Gunn’s hope is now a reality as Wondr Man comes to life next year only on Disney+.