Marvel Studios and Disney+ reversing course on a second season of “Wonder Man” took its showrunner Andrew Guest by surprise too. In a video on TikTok posted Saturday evening, Guest opened up about how plans were already in place for Season 2 with series co-creator Destin Daniel Cretton and stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Ben Kingsley.
“Yahya, Destin, Sir Ben and I all loved making this show. (We) all felt passionately about continuing to do it and were eager to. Contracts were signed, schedules were cleared,” Guest said. “The writers’ room was supposed to start this month. The production was supposed to begin early next year, and there was a decision made internally between Disney and Marvel that this didn’t make sense for them, even though a few months ago it did. That’s essentially all I really know. Numbers aren’t really shared with me.”
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Guest also used the statement to disprove speculation that the cancellation, which reversed course on previous Season 2 renewal, was a promotional ruse. “Wonder Man” follows a struggling Hollywood actor auditioning for a superhero film while concealing his real superpowers, leading some fans to theorize the decision was actually a rug-pull playing on the story’s showbiz setting.
“This is not a marketing stunt. There is no movie in the works,” Guest said. “Even though the writers’ room hadn’t started, I had written the first episode of Season 2 and we had an outline for where the season would go. Everyone felt really good about it.”
The showrunner also acknowledged fan criticisms of Marvel failing to make good on stories featuring people of color. News of “Wonder Man” ending came shortly after Mahershala Ali affirmed that he had exited Marvel’s “Blade” reboot, which had spent years struggling in development. Marvel’s failure to deliver two stories with Black protagonists emerged just days after the studio unveiled a “Ghost Rider” reboot starring Ryan Gosling, raising eyebrows among some viewers.
“There’s important conversations being had online about the kind of stories that we’re prioritizing and the kind of shows platforms want to make,” Guest said. “I hope people are listening, and I also hope that Emmy voters are thinking about Yahya and how much he deserves an Emmy for the incredible work he did on this show.”
Abdul-Mateen is nominated for outstanding lead actor in a comedy series for his work in “Wonder Man.”
