Plot: Hollywood actor Simon Williams is thrust into the world of superheroes as he gets powers of his own, and becomes the new superhero Wonder Man.
I was intrigue of this new series.
This miniseries was Very good.
Pros: I give credit for the meta-humour used in this series quite solidly. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II made a convincing Simon Williams. I was impressed with Ben Kingsley’s Trevor Slattery and how they used him. It wonderfully depicted Hollywood really well. The way how it structured and how its percentage & how I was wrong on how good this series was.
Cons: I find the P. Cleary lacking in temptation. Williams doesn’t get to used his powers that much. Some moments became contrived and the ending of the finale should have ended when it did.
Genre: Comedy, Superhero, Action-adventure
Created by Destin Daniel Cretton, Andrew Guest
Based on Wonder Man by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Don Heck
Showrunner: Andrew Guest
Starring: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, X Mayo, Zlatko Burić, Arian Moayed, Shola Adewusi, Demetrius Grosse, Béchir Sylvain, Kameron J. Meadows, Olivia Thirlby, Byron Bowers, Joe Pantoliano, Josh Gad & Ben Kingsley.
Music by Joel P. West
Executive producers: Kevin Feige, Stephen Broussard, Jonathan Schwartz, Louis D’Esposito, Brad Winderbaum, Destin Daniel Cretton, Andrew Guest
Producer: Bonnie Muñoz
Production Location: Los Angeles, California
Cinematography: Brett Pawlak, Armando Salas
Editors: Gina Sansom, Nena Erb, Cassie Dixon
Production companies: Marvel Television
Network: Disney+
Casts & Characters:
- Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Simon Williams:
An aspiring actor who auditions for the lead role in the remake of an in-universe Wonder Man film and secretly possesses superpowers, including superhuman strength and speed, as well as the ability to create massive explosions. Showrunner Andrew Guest described the character as “incredibly powerful in a way that even he is not fully aware”, with Marvel Studios executive Brian Gay adding that Simon “doesn’t even know the extent of what his powers are”, although both noted that the character does not care that he has powers and simply wants to be an accomplished actor like Daniel Day-Lewis. Abdul-Mateen explained that Simon hides his powers because they are looked down upon, due to the Doorman Clause having banned superpowered individuals from the Marvel Cinematic Universe‘s (MCU) fictional version of Hollywood. The character allowed Abdul-Mateen to explore “some three-dimensionality” between his past and relationship to his family, while still being a superhero. Kameron J. Meadows portrays a young Simon. - X Mayo as Janelle Jackson: Simon’s agent
- Zlatko Burić as Von Kovak:
A celebrated and reclusive director who is directing the Wonder Man remake. Guest said the character is a combination of filmmakers Werner Herzog, Krzysztof Kieślowski, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Christopher Nolan. - Ben Kingsley as Trevor Slattery:
A failed actor who previously took on the guise of the Mandarin working for Aldrich Killian and was later abducted by Xu Wenwu‘s Ten Rings organization, who is also auditioning for the Wonder Man film. Slattery returns to Hollywood after the Mandarin and Ten Rings fallout to find a “second chance” as an actor and to prove to his mother Dorothy he was “the actor [she] always hoped he would be”, with Wonder Man showing Slattery take ownership for his past behavior. He becomes friends with Simon though he also realizes Simon is someone he can exploit. Guest called Slattery a “Forrest Gump-y, Chauncey Gardiner-type character” who manages to get “caught up in bigger-picture things”. Executive producer Brad Winderbaum said the character had a “very interesting three-act structure” within the series that was “very sincere, very earnest [and] not cynical”, with Kingsley adding that Slattery gets “pulled in two directions”, including reaching his ambition but “at a terrible cost”. Winderbaum said the series concludes a trilogy for Slattery, following his appearances in the MCU films Iron Man 3 (2013) and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021). - Arian Moayed as P. Cleary: A Department of Damage Control (DODC) agent, who considers Simon an “extraordinary threat”
- Joe Pantoliano as himself
- Byron Bowers as DeMarr Davis / Doorman:
A former doorman at the Wilcox Club whose body can phase through objects and is connected to a door-filled dimension. He later becomes an actor, but his powers cause an on-set incident involving his co-star Josh Gad, leading to the creation of the Doorman Clause. - Josh Gad as himself:
Gad used Method acting techniques for his performance in Wonder Man, and stated that he had hoped to play a superhero in the series, although he admitted that he ended up playing “the next best thing, which is myself”. - Shola Adewusi as Martha Williams: Simon and Eric’s mother
- Demetrius Grosse as Eric Williams: Simon’s “stable” older brother who works in insurance
- Béchir Sylvain as Sanford Williams: Simon and Eric’s late father
- Olivia Thirlby as Vivian: An actress and Simon’s ex-girlfriend
Additional cast members include Juliette Ortega as Melanie; Dane Larsen as the actor who played the title character in the original Wonder Man film; Jon Abrahams as Frank Preminger, Davis’s agent; Mario Lopez and Ashley Greene as themselves; Simon Templeman as Richard, another actor auditioning for a role in the Wonder Man remake; Phumzile Sitole as Lauren, the director of the American Horror Story episode Simon is filming; Charlotte Ross as Bridget, the owner of the nightclub where Davis worked as a doorman; and Torrey Vogel as a DODC agent.
I highly recommend watching this series on Disney Plus.
Rating: 8 out of 10 Stars
Ryan Balkwill:
Resident Film reviewer,
Level Best Art Cafe