It’s been a weird month for the creative team behind Wonder Man. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II's portrayal of Simon Williams was so good that he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. Then, the praise for the show led to the project getting renewed for a second season. Both things were amazing news for everyone involved in Wonder Man, especially since the show was almost not released and overachieved on Disney+. Sadly, it looks like high praise, overachieving, and award nominations weren’t enough. On July 30, Wonder Man’s previously green-lit second season was canceled.
Wonder Man did a fantastic job on two fronts. First, it was different from most of the shows Marvel Studios has produced. It was fun and didn't need a ton of action to keep people’s attention. It was very reminiscent of what She-Hulk: Attorney at Law brought to Disney+ (more on that later).
Second, the show had some of the best acting in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It was more than just Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (who was outstanding). Ben Kingsley (Trevor Slattery/the Mandarin) and X Mayo (Janelle Jackson) were fantastic. I’ll even go as far as to say that Byron Bowers' episode as Doorman was the most memorable of the season. Nevertheless, here we are with a well-reviewed show getting axed. And, honestly, I’m not shocked.
Wonder Man isn’t the first MCU show or movie to be canceled or left in limbo. The aforementioned She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, Moon Knight, and Blade have all been canceled or have their futures left up in the air. And then there’s Don Cheadle’s Armor Wars. It's still confirmed, but no one seems to know what’s going on. What’s the common denominator between all of these projects? They either involve a person of color or a woman.
She-Hulk was ripped apart online by people who either hate women or didn’t watch the show. Meanwhile, the project did great numbers weekly. Moon Knight was met with mixed reviews but still manages to be talked about on social media, with people wondering when it’s coming back. While it was in theaters, The Marvels was review-bombed but was praised when it was released on Disney+ (with people wishing they didn't listen to critics). As for Blade, the project has already lost two directors, and as much as I love Mahershala Ali (who’s playing Blade), he isn’t getting any younger.
As a person of color, it’s hard not to see that people who look like me aren’t getting prioritized at Marvel. Sure, Captain America is Black, and David Jonsson was announced as the next Black Panther. Both are things I’m ecstatic about. But what’s next for Dominique Thorne and Anthony Ramos in Iron Heart? What’s up with Monica Rambeau? Will Iman Vellani star in another Ms. Marvel show? These are legitimate questions I’d like answered.
While I may be upset by what’s happening, Wonder Man himself, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, doesn’t seem to be (at least publicly). In his Instagram post (that you can see above), he said, “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 show worked. And that’s my favorite thing about it.”
My favorite part of his post was him saying, “I’m glad we got to be a part of something cool. Thank you for watching… And uhh… See you at the EMMYS." We certainly will, and I’ll be rooting for him.
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