Although the Marvel Cinematic Universe has run into some problems lately, it still turns out solid movies and TV shows now and again. Case in point: Wonder Man, a series about a struggling actor named Simon Williams who just so happens to have ionic superpowers (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) went over really well when it dropped on Disney+ in late January.
There’s no official word on whether Wonder Man will have a second season, although it’s definitely possible; in the MCU, nothing ever really ends. While fans wait for news, there are a lot of other shows out there that may scratch the Wonder Man itch.
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WandaVision
When superheroes and TV collide
In 2021, not that long ago, Disney released WandaVision, its first-ever TV show set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. WandaVision picked up with Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) some time after the events of Avengers: Endgame, when she was living in a bucolic suburban paradise with her husband Vision (Paul Bettany). But it soon became clear that something was very wrong, and that Wanda was actually using her powers to make over her life in the style of the sitcoms she enjoyed growing up, from I Love Lucy all the way through to The Office.
WandaVision was a very bold swing for Marvel’s first MCU TV show, and it went over well: to this day, it’s arguably still the most celebrated show in the MCU. And it holds up. It’s a surreal mix of superhero drama and television nostalgia, something fans of Wonder Man should be able to easily appreciate.
- Release Date
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2021 – 2021-00-00
- Showrunner
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Jac Schaeffer
- Directors
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Matt Shakman
The Studio
The best show about modern Hollywood now running
One of the interesting things about Wonder Man is that if you change a few details, it could just be a story about an actor trying to make it in modern Hollywood, rather than about a secret superhero trying to make it. Simon Williams is trying to break into the Hollywood run by people like Matt Remick (Seth Rogen), the executive at the center of The Studio, a terrific satire of modern movie-making celebrated for its long cuts, sharp jokes, and great cast. Just as Josh Gad and Joe Pantoliano show up in Wonder Man, you’ll see plenty of celebrity cameos in The Studio, because how could you make a show set in Hollywood and not include a few?
- Release Date
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March 25, 2025
- Network
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Apple TV+
- Writers
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Peter Huck
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-
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Dewayne Perkins
Uncredited
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Ike Barinholtz
Sal Saperstein
She-Hulk
What if you were on a TV show and knew it?
By the time Marvel got around to making She-Hulk, appetite for their TV shows had abated somewhat, and She-Hulk didn’t get great reviews when it debuted in 2022. But looking back, it’s a fun little show that has some things to say about the intersection between superheroics and Hollywood, just like Wonder Man. In particular, a late season twist finds hero Jessica Walters (Tatiana Maslany) break the fourth wall and actually confront the writers of the show about the direction of the plot. If that kind of meta play intrigues you, give She-Hulk a shot.
- Release Date
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2022 – 2022
- Network
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Disney+
- Showrunner
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Jessica Gao
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Tatiana Maslany
Jennifer Walters / She-Hulk
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Ginger Gonzaga
Nikki Ramos
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Jameela Jamil
Mary MacPherran / Titania
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Renée Elise Goldsberry
Mallory Book
Barry
A killer role for Bill Hader
Barry Berkman (Bill Hader) isn’t a superhero; he’s a professional assassin, which may cause him even more problems. This hilarious show follows Barry as he tries to leave his life of crime behind and become an actor. Along the way, we get tons of commentary about the absurdity of modern Hollywood, including several digs at the superhero genre. Saturday Night Live alum Bill Hader gives the performance of his career as an empty man who tries to find purpose pretending to be other people, but finds he can’t quite get away from his old life.
- Release Date
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2018 – 2023-00-00
- Network
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HBO Max
- Showrunner
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Alec Berg
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Sarah Goldberg
Sally Reed
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Anthony Carrigan
NoHo Hank
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Henry Winkler
Gene Cousineau
The Boys
Superheroes are the real stars
The Boys is the most cynical superhero show currently on TV; by and large, the heroes in this series are selfish, power-mad narcissists who do way more harm than good. But the powers that be try to sell them as decent and heroic through films like Dawn of the Seven, a parody of The Avengers that pokes fun at the superhero movie obsession of the 2010s.
The fifth and final season of The Boys is just around the corner, so this is the perfect time to catch up.
- Release Date
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2019 – 2026-00-00
- Showrunner
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Eric Kripke
- Directors
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Erin Moriarty, Karen Fukuhara, Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Eric Kripke
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Jack Quaid
Hugh Hughie Campbell
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Antony Starr
John / Homelander
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Erin Moriarty
Annie January / Starlight
The Other Two
The industry calls
Like Wonder Man, this show profiles a couple of 30-something dreamers (Drew Tarver and Heléne Yorke) trying to break into the entertainment industry, only neither are as talented as Simon Williams. In this case, they’re trying to ride the coattails of their younger brother Chase Dreams (Case Walker), who becomes a viral sensation overnight.
Like other shows about Hollywood, The Other Two depicts it as a shallow, soulless place, but the show has enough heart and warmth to keep thing from feeling completely hopeless.
- Release Date
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2019 – 2023-00-00
- Network
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Comedy Central
- Directors
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Chris Kelly
- Writers
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Chris Kelly, Sarah Schneider
Watchmen
From Hollywood to Tulsa
Watchmen is one of the few shows on this list that isn’t actually about Hollywood, but it does play with the notion of what a superhero series can be in a way that recalls Wonder Man. In Tulsa, Oklahoma, a terrorist group called the Seventh Kavalry threatens the peace. Masked vigilantes are outlawed, but the police start wearing masks to conceal their identities from those who may want to hurt them.
In this reality, Robert Redford is president, the smartest man on Earth no longer lives on the planet, and Wonder Man star Yahya Abdul-Mateen II plays a very important role. Watchmen is a show with a lot on its mind; there are few series darker, sharper, and smarter.
- Release Date
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2019 – 2019-00-00
- Network
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HBO
- Directors
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David Semel, Fred Toye
- Writers
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Nick Cuse, Carly Wray
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Don Johnson
Angela Abar / Sister Night
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Tim Blake Nelson
Lady Trieu
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Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
Mr. Phillips / Game Warden
Entourage
Before Aquaman, there was Aquaman on Entourage
For eight seasons, Entourage follows an up-and-coming actor (Adrian Grenier) and his friends as they try to make it in Hollywood. Years before the DC Cinematic Universe got off the ground, Entourage did a whole story about an Aquaman movie, skewering the genre well ahead of time. The Hollywood of Entourage is a shallow place, as per usual, but the characters seem to be enjoying the glitz and the glam so much it’s easy to get sucked in.
More around the corner
Some of these shows are long over and some are in the midst of their runs. And since Hollywood loves making shows about itself and about superheroes, you’ll never have to wait long for something else in this vein. For instance, in March, Marvel will start airing the second season of Daredevil: Born Again on Disney+. This should be more than enough to tide you over until then.
