Trevor Slattery, played by Ben Kingsley, was initially set to headline his own MCU project before it merged with Wonder Man.

The latest streaming series in the MCU, Wonder Man, centers on actor Simon Williams as he forms a connection with Trevor Slattery, the notorious actor who famously impersonated the Mandarin in Iron Man 3. While their collaboration seems like a perfect match, the narratives of Simon and Trevor were initially intended to unfold in separate projects before being combined.

This duo proves to be a fantastic pairing, with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Simon Williams) and Ben Kingsley (Trevor Slattery) delivering standout performances that drive the series forward, showcasing their impressive chemistry.

“This show began with [director Destin Daniel Cretton] and Sir Ben enjoying their time together on the set of Shang-Chi and wanting to collaborate on a project,” says Wonder Man writer and co-creator Andrew Young. “It eventually merged with another Marvel project focused on Wonder Man. When I met with Destin, they presented this idea to me as a two-hander. We knew Sir Ben was on board, and we had Trevor Slattery in mind.”

After Cretton and Kingsley developed a rapport during the filming of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, where Slattery is released from prison by Wen-Wu, the real Mandarin, they worked closely to shape Slattery’s character arc in Wonder Man. This arc sees him return to Los Angeles and build an unexpected friendship with fellow actor Simon Williams.

“I met with him in England early in the process and spent about two or three hours talking with him,” Cretton recalls. “I recorded our conversation, which covered his views on acting and performance, as well as what he thought Trevor’s perspective might be. We brainstormed a lot of ideas about Trevor’s backstory, some of which made it into the show. I think that was the spark for his desire to return to Los Angeles to make his mum proud. This dialogue with our actors was crucial and greatly influenced what you see in the final product.”

All eight episodes of Wonder Man are available for streaming on Disney+.