1 Upcoming MCU TV Series Will Break A 3 Year Live-Action Marvel Trend

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Summary

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II will debut as Simon Williams in the MCU's Wonder Man series, which will release under the Marvel Spotlight banner.
Wonder Man will be the MCU's first live-action TV series comprising ten episodes, as the most any others have included is nine.
X-Men '97 was Marvel Studios' first series to release ten episodes, but the animated series isn't technically part of the MCU.

Marvel Studios' upcoming Wonder Man series is set to break a 3-year-old live-action record for TV shows in the MCU. After the successful release of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, director Destin Daniel Cretton signed a multi-year deal to develop more projects for Marvel Studios. One of these is a Disney+ series focused on Simon Williams' Wonder Man, a superhero-turned-actor in Marvel Comics. While the Yahya Abdul-Mateen II-led series hasn't yet been given a scheduled release date, the MCU's Wonder Man series is already breaking records for the franchise.
Wonder Man began his Marvel Comics career as a villain, but eventually fought alongside Marvel's biggest heroes, meaning he could be a significant figure in the MCU's upcoming future. This is especially true given he's set to appear in the second of the franchise's Marvel Spotlight series, which is seemingly intended to provide audiences with shows that they don't need to have seen other MCU releases to get. Given that Echo, the previous Spotlight show, managed to become Marvel's most-watched show of 2024, there's a high bar set for Wonder Man, making its record-breaking setup all the more crucial.

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Wonder Man Will Be The First Live-Action MCU TV Show With 10 Episodes Previous MCU TV Shows Have Mostly Comprised 6 Or 9 Episodes

During a June 2024 report revealing Yahya Abdul-Mateen II's casting in Netflix's Man on Fire, Deadline confirmed that the MCU's Wonder Man series would contain ten episodes. This will break a 3-year-old record for the MCU's TV shows, as no previous live-action series has included ten episodes, with the most recent longest show being that of She-Hulk: Attorney At Law. Most of Marvel Studios' TV shows have consisted of six episode long series, and - given there has been some criticism that these stories simply aren't long enough - a longer episode roster for Wonder Man seems set to address these concerns.
This record was originally expected to be claimed by Daredevil: Born Again, but the 18-episode first season has now been split into two nine-episode runs, meaning Wonder Man's will still be the first to reach this mark. Abdul-Mateen II is a huge draw for Marvel Studios, so it's brilliant that he's been gifted ten episodes to explore his complex character, giving him plenty of time to make his mark on the MCU.
Released MCU Live-Action TV Shows
Release Date
Episodes
WandaVision
Jan-Mar 2021
9
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Mar-Apr 2021
6
Loki Season 1
Jun-Jul 2021
6
Hawkeye
Nov-Dec 2021
6
Moon Knight
Mar-May 2022
6
Ms. Marvel
Jun-Jul 2022
6
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law
Aug-Oct 2022
9
Secret Invasion
Jun-Jul 2023
6
Loki Season 2
Oct-Nov 2023
6
Echo
Jan 2024
5
X-Men ’97 Season 1 Had 10 Episodes, But Isn’t Part Of The MCU X-Men '97 Season 1 Broke The Record For Most Episodes In A Marvel Studios Animated Series Close While Wonder Man will be the first live-action TV series developed by Marvel Studios to contain ten episodes, one recent animated series already broke this record. Marvel Animation's X-Men '97, a revival of 1992's X-Men: The Animated Series, saw the X-Men team battle a variety of villains and deal with their interpersonal issues over the course of ten episodes, though this was in many ways split into some shorter arcs. This is expected to continue in X-Men '97 season 2 and 3, which are currently in development.
Previously, What If...? came close to matching this record for Marvel's animated shows, as each season of the MCU multiverse series includes nine episodes. However, while X-Men '97 may have already set the record for most episodes, the show is animated, and not actually part of the MCU's main continuity. Wonder Man is the first live-action MCU series to include ten episodes, which could be a sign of longer seasons being developed in the MCU's future, and Wonder Man will also expand on one of Marvel Studios' newest developments.

Related Every X-Men '97 Episode Ranked Worst To Best While it is safe to say that some X-Men "97 episodes rank better than others, one thing is for certain: the whole series was a Marvel masterclass.
Wonder Man Will Be The MCU’s Next Marvel Spotlight Series Echo Was The MCU's First Marvel Spotlight Series

In November 2023, Marvel Studios unveiled a new release banner for a selection of its upcoming TV shows. Head of Streaming, Brad Winderbaum, explained to Marvel that the new banner would focus on "grounded, character-driven stories... focusing on street-level stakes over larger MCU continuity." Wonder Man has been confirmed to be the next series releasing under the Marvel Spotlight banner, which may go some way to explain why it's also the MCU's longest debut season yet.

Marvel Spotlight gives us a platform to bring more grounded, character-driven stories to the screen, and in the case of Echo, focusing on street-level stakes over larger MCU continuity. Just like comics fans didn’t need to read Avengers or Fantastic Four to enjoy a Ghost Rider Spotlight comic, our audience doesn’t need to have seen other Marvel series to understand what’s happening in Maya’s story.

The Spotlight label implies that audiences don't need to do a great deal of homework prior to watching Wonder Man, even though some MCU characters are expected to return. As a Marvel Spotlight series, Wonder Man may be standalone, despite introducing a new hero who could be crucial to the development of several new superhero teams. As such, its longer run time is sure to help flesh out any story and character elements that may need extra time in order to ensure that Wonder Man can be one of the MCU's most successful TV shows yet.

Wonder Man Released on Disney+ as a limited series, Marvel Studios' Wonder Man introduces the titular Avengers hero in the MCU. Starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as the actor-turned-superhero Simon Williams, Wonder Man also features Ben Kingsley, who reprises his Iron Man 3 and Shang-Chi role as the eccentric thespian Trevor Slattery.
Cast Yahya Abdul-Mateen II , Ben Kingsley , Demetrius Grosse , Ed Harris Seasons 1 Creator(s) Destin Daniel Cretton Production Company Marvel Studios Upcoming MCU Movies
Release Date
Deadpool & Wolverine
July 26, 2024
Captain America: Brave New World
February 14, 2025
Thunderbolts*
May 5, 2025
The Fantastic Four
July 25, 2025
Blade
November 7, 2025
Avengers 5
May 1, 2026
Avengers: Secret Wars
May 7, 2027

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