‘Wonder Man’ showrunner weighs in to ‘clear up’ rumors about the show’s cancellation: ‘This is not a marketing stunt’

Wonder Man fans are currently navigating a wave of confusion after Marvel decided to un-renew the Disney+ series for a second season, prompting co-creator and showrunner Andrew Guest to speak out. On Saturday night, Guest shared a video to address the situation and provide some much-needed clarity for those who have been speculating about the show’s future, Deadline reported.

Guest started by acknowledging the reaction from the fanbase, saying, “I just wanna say, I’ve been listening. I appreciate you all, how you all feel, and I just want to clear up what I can here.” Guest emphasized that the cast and crew were fully committed to moving forward, noting, “Yahya [Abdul-Mateen II], Destin [Daniel Cretton], Sir Ben [Kingsley] and I all loved making this show, all felt passionately about continuing to do it, and were eager to. Contracts were signed, schedules were cleared, writers room was supposed to start this month, production was supposed to begin early next year.”

One of the most persistent rumors floating around involves the idea that this cancellation might be some sort of clever promotional tactic. Guest was quick to shut that down, stating, “This is not a marketing stunt. There is no movie in the works. And Destin’s schedule—no one’s schedule was an issue.”

Guest explained that the decision came down to Marvel and Disney changing their perspective on the project’s viability

Guest explained, “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. And that’s essentially all I really know. Numbers aren’t really shared with me.”

The show, which is based on the Marvel comics character Simon Williams, had a solid start when it debuted in January. The story follows Simon, an aspiring actor played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, as he tries to find his big break alongside Trevor Slattery, played by Sir Ben Kingsley.

The series offers a look at the entertainment industry, and it seems the creative team had a very clear vision for where the story was headed. Guest mentioned that he “had written the first episode of Season 2, and we had an outline for where the season would go, and everyone felt really good about it. It was gonna be a really incredible season that hopefully surpassed Season 1.”

It is worth noting that the show was performing well in specific demographics, as Nielsen data from January 27 showed 618M minutes viewed in its opening week. The series was particularly popular with the 35-49 age range, which accounted for 41% of the viewing. Despite this, Marvel walked back its March renewal decision this week.

Guest is clearly proud of the work the team accomplished, especially the lead performance by Abdul-Mateen, who recently earned an Emmy nomination. As Guest told his followers, “I appreciate everybody getting out there and letting your voices be heard about how you feel about this, and I think there’s important conversations being had online about the kind of stories that we’re prioritizing and the kind of shows platforms wanna make. I hope people are listening, and I also hope that Emmy voters are thinking about Yahya and how much he deserves the Emmy for the incredible work he did on the show.”