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What exactly are Wonder Man's powers? The guy who knows best isn't saying.

Alright, I guess I should clarify that. When I ask "What are Wonder Man's powers," I'm specifically referring to the version of the character we're about to meet when he enters the Marvel Cinematic Universe, via the Disney+ series that bears his name. And that tight-lipped talent I'm talking about here is the star of the show, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. Mateen will play Simon Williams in the most immediate entry to the sprawling gallery of MCU superheroes, but when it comes to what makes this particular hero super, Mateen is staying mum.

Er, kinda.

The story comes from an interview that the Aquaman and Watchmen actor did with the good folks at Empire Magazine. Asked about his character's superhuman skills, Mateen said that "There’s no fun in giving you a direct answer," but didn't try to pull off one of those oh-so-familiar non-answers that the casts of Hollywood blockbuster projects resort to when it comes to specifics.

"Simon would say that his power," Mateen expounded, "Or the thing that makes him special, is his talent and ambition, and that’s what he wants to share with the world. I was told that this would be something that was separate from the comics."

Now that's something interesting. In the Marvel Comics that inspired the upcoming Disney+ series, the titular Simon Williams is, well, not much of an actor (think Calculon, if you're one of my beloved Futurama fans out there). So is Mateen saying that this version of the character will actually be talented? It would make sense - he does have Sir Ben Kingsley as a scene partner, after all.

All that aside, Mateen doesn't want you superhero fans reading this to worry about the show being devoid of the scifi action that makes Marvel Marvel. "There’s a lot of fun in knowing that we have special moments…," said the actor, "Moments that will make the fans excited."

OK, that kind of feels like a non-answer.

Wonder Man comes to Disney+ January 27, 2026.

Consider this a meta post-credits scene for Marvel fans - the four key articles you need to read next to continue the thrills:

• How to watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe in release or chronological order
• The best Marvel Comics stories of all time
• All the MCU movies ranked from best to worst
• Our weekly Marvel insider's column, Marvel Matters