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Comic book filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton originally sold Wonder Man as a “joke pitch” before it became one of the more successful Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) shows on Disney+.
The Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Spider-Man: Brand New Day director spoke about the early days of the latest MCU spinoff show during a panel at Deadline Contenders TV. Before becoming a director, writer, and executive producer for Wonder Man, he says he helped sell the project – even if the original pitch wasn’t intended to actually turn into anything.
The idea was born from Cretton’s love for Trevor Slattery, the actor-turned-terrorist played by Ben Kingsley, who appeared in both Iron Man 3 and Shang-Chi. He’s mostly served to deliver a quick gag for MCU watchers in the past, and that’s exactly how his much larger role in Wonder Man came to be.
“The genesis of the idea actually sprouted when we were on the set of Shang Chi and I just loved working with Sir Ben [Kingsley, as Trevor Slattery] and I really loved his character and I really feel like in every movie Trevor Slattery has been such a standout and under utilized,” Cretton said. “So I did a joke pitch to my producer Jonathan Schwartz and said ‘We should do Trevor Goes To Hollywood.'”
He added: “The joke pitch kind of escalated because [Schwartz], as a joke, made a poster with our art department of Trevor Goes to Hollywood with Trevor Slattery in a convertible and it looked 1980s. And I thought we have to do this show! So that’s how it began.”
While the weight the Marvel Disney+ shows have in the MCU is up for debate, they typically serve as a springboard for more recognizable names from across the wide comic book universe. Past entries, for example, have offered an expanded look at characters like Loki and Hawkeye, while others have introduced heroes like Moon Knight, She-Hulk, and Ms. Marvel.
Wonder Man, however, mostly puts superpowers in the back seat to tell a story of Simon Williams (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and Trevor as they try to make it as actors in Hollywood. Despite the change of pace, Wonder Man managed to secure a Season 2 greenlight on Disney+ just last month, making it one of only three MCU shows to run past one season.
Cretton clarified that the joke pitch just so happened to start being kicked around the same time that Marvel started to show interest in bringing Wonder Man to life. It was the combination of the joke pitch with the desire to create a story set in Hollywood that ultimately resulted in the Wonder Man that debuted on Disney+ in January.
“This was a risk creatively for Marvel and I think it was one they reexamined during the strike,” executive producer Andrew Guest added. “It’s been this underground project that the people at Marvel believed in.”
Wonder Man Season 2 currently has no release date. While we wait for news, you can read our 8/10 review, where we called the show “a smaller, low-stakes MCU adventure that thrives on the strength of Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Ben Kingsley’s performances.”
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
