Marvel’s Wonder Man Series Is Borrowing An Underrated Peacemaker Marketing Gimmick
Optimism is a major vibe in superhero stories right now. “Superman” decided that hope is punk rock, and “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” presents a bright, poppy, retro-future version of the past that frankly seems alien at this point. Despite some corners of the internet constantly claiming that everything sucks, there are reasons to feel good on TV, at the movies, and all around us. Getting this injection of hope can be infectious, and Marvel fans who opened themselves up to a little positivity might have been surprised to see Wonder Man on the carpet for “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” this week, and what that appearance teases about the nature of his upcoming Disney+ series. “Wonder Man” is borrowing a bit of the approach DC used with “Peacemaker” and that show’s real-world marketing gimmick, and it could be a sign of what’s under the hood with the next MCU TV show.
Marvel’s social media channels were all geared towards “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” this week, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s stroll onto the blue carpet was somewhat unexpected, even more so once people realized he was doing interviews in character as his Marvel hero, Simon Williams, who’s an actor with superpowers trying to play a superhero. “Wonder Man” doesn’t land on Disney+ for months, but this appearance served as a little wink that there’s something else the MCU has up its sleeve for 2025, and this time things are going to get a little meta, which is something that provides a clear identity for the series. Marvel’s Instagram account highlighted Williams heading into the new movie in their stories, and asked about him getting the opportunity to play “Wonder Man,” and apparently this iteration is just the latest version of the character.
Abdul-Mateen II, as Williams, replied, “You know, I grew up a really big fan of Wonder Man, a really big fan of comics. It was actually the first movie that I saw in theaters with my father, when I was very young. And, you know, I left the theater that day wanting to be a super hero. So, this is amazing, and this is a beautiful full circle feeling for me.”
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II doing interviews as Wonder Man could indicate that series is jumping headfirst into industry satire
DC has its own hero that does real-world interviews dressed up like his on-screen character, and his name is Peacemaker, aka Christopher Smith (though you may know him as John Cena). Three years ago, you couldn’t get the WWE legend to do an interview for “Peacemaker” on HBO Max without that red shirt and khakis on. It made for funny late night bits and silly stops on the daytime talk show circuit, but it worked super well in getting people used to seeing him as a character, and now Marvel is kind of pushing that concept forward with these “Wonder Man” interviews. Abdul-Mateen looks like he’ll be keeping those red glasses around for all the press events on the docket, even when the (staged) interviews go a little south on him, as Marvel dutifully documented during that premiere.
They asked the actor, “We’ve heard you’ve become close with problematic public figure, Trevor Slattery, aka The Mandarin. Can you tell us more?” (Ben Kingsley’s Trevor Slattery is set to return in “Wonder Man” after his appearance in “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” for those wondering about the connection.) Clearly flustered, the superstar’s rep quickly pulls him out of that interview, just like a real publicist would, and it’s clear this is all building to some satire about the state of the entertainment industry. In another interview with Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes, Simon Williams mentions a director named Von Kouvac, which is a strange clue to drop so far away from the series’ release, as he’s just interviewing for the part in the first trailers for the MCU show. Things are going to get zany in the months ahead, and one of the inarguable things about the recent phases of these projects has been Marvel Studios’ willingness to try out different genres.
Just like Peacemaker, Wonder Man has the chance to put a lesser-known superhero on the map with a bold interpretation of what these stories can be
When you put them both up against each other, there’s more similarity between “Peacemaker” and “Wonder Man” than you would initially think, and they can both achieve similar goals. Each of these characters is a lesser-known entry in their respective comics’ libraries, and with the right push, can be very compelling on their own, as Cena and James Gunn proved with “Peacemaker” season 1. In that case, it was turning a lot of the director’s impulses up to 11 and not shying away from the strange world that DC Comics inhabits; giant aliens and talking eagles are totally welcome.
Marvel is smart to find a good hook for “Wonder Man” as they’ve had a lot of origin stories since 2020, and just delivering more of the same might not be enough to lure audiences in for multiple weeks nearing the holidays on Disney+. Metatextual strangeness could be just what the doctor ordered for a character with the … let’s say unique history of Wonder Man, whose claim to fame is being a ’90s Avengers member in a love triangle with Scarlet Witch and Vision. Hollywood satire seems to be having a moment as well (check out all those Emmy Award nominations for “The Studio”), so there might be an appetite there. Adding any intrigue this early in the promo cycle for “Wonder Man” has me feeling optimistic about the show … or maybe it’s just that hope in the air talking.
