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Ever since WandaVision graced Disney+, Marvel Studios has proved that it isn't afraid to get meta. But now, as the studio gears up for the release of Disney+ miniseries, Wonder Man, the company's top brass are concerned that they may have arrived too late with a meta follow-up. In the years since WandaVision's release, Hollywood has responded with its own self-aware takes on the dominance of superheroes in the film and television industries, with shows like The Franchise on HBO and The Studio on Apple TV+ providing their own dark mirrors of our world today. 

An article from Variety noted that Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige was feeling conflicted on how Wonder Man's delayed release has meant that the edgier and meta aspects about the miniseries aren't quite as novel as they were before the release of shows like The Franchise and The Studio. "Feige, who was wearing a Wonder Man baseball cap, pointed out that Marvel made the show before HBO Max’s 2024 comic book movie send-up The Franchise, or Apple TV+’s 2025 Hollywood satire The Studio. But now it looks like they’re following a trend, instead of leading it."

For context, Wonder Man, the TV show, is about a working actor named Simon Williams who auditions to become the lead of a reboot based on the character Wonder Man. Yeah. So, within the world of the MCU, or whatever reality the Wonder Man show takes place in, Wonder Man as an intellectual property already exists before the events of the Disney+ show unfold. Obviously, for comic book readers of a certain Avengers persuasion, know that Wonder Man - the superhero with red glasses and a red jacket - is as much a bona fide hero as Captain America, The Vision, Black Panther, whoever you'd put on your Avengers lineup. It remains a question as to when or if we'll actually see Simon Williams do his Wonder Man thing alongside Earth's Mightiest Heroes in the MCU. If that makes sense?

Anyways, Wonder Man will begin streaming on Disney+ on January 27, 2026. 

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