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Yahya Abdul-Mateen II cast as Marvel’s Wonder Man

Marvel has found its Wonder Man in Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who will lead the Disney Plus series for Destin Daniel Cretton and Andrew Guest

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II

Marvel has found its Wonder Man in Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. The Disney Plus series is being developed by Shang-Chi’s Destin Daniel Cretton with Andrew Guest (known for comedy series Community and Brooklyn Nine-Nine). Wonder Man is one of Marvel’s oldest characters and was first introduced in 1964.

In the comics, Wonder Man, whose real name is the very normal sounding Simon Williams, is initially recruited by Baron Zemo (played by Daniel Bruhl in the MCU) and his Masters of Evil, but he switches allegiances to The Avengers. Simon’s older brother Eric becomes a villain called The Grim Reaper. The only other casting announcement we’ve had so far for Wonder Man is Ben Kingsley as Trevor Slattery. Slattery being an actor crosses over with Williams’ day job as an actor and stuntman.

In the 1980s Wonder Man really came into his own with a look that included a turtleneck, a red jacket and sunglasses. The character develops strong ties to Vision and Wanda/Scarlet Witch, which could potentially be a way of bringing these two characters back after WandaVision.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has donned spandex a couple of times before – as Manta in the DECU’s Aquaman, and as Dr. Manhattan in HBO’s Watchmen series. He has been in high demand in recent years – in Jordan Peele’s Us, Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7, Nia DaCosta’s Candyman, Lana Wachowski’s The Matrix Resurrections, and Michael Bay’s Ambulance.

It’s not yet known how involved Destin Daniel Cretton will be in Wonder Man, he is possibly just directing the pilot. He has a lot on his plate with preparations for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, as well as Shang-Chi 2.

While we wait for more news on Wonder Man, check out our guide to Marvel’s Phase 5.