Wonder Man’s Creator Addresses Release Backlash: “The Internet Likes to Make Up Stories”

When Disney+ announced the release information for Wonder Man, many fans believed that the streaming service had no faith in the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe release. Most Marvel shows have gotten weekly releases, which helps raise the discussion for the shows and keeps them in people’s minds longer than shows that get dropped all at once and then are forgotten about a week later. However, Wonder Man got the same one-day dump that Eyes of Wakanda received last year, and many fans believed this was because Disney+ didn’t have faith that the show would keep viewers coming back for more.

According to showrunner Destin Daniel Cretton, that is not the reason for the release format at all. In an interview with radio station Majic 102.1 (via Movie Web), Cretton said that the show wasn’t “dumped” or “abandoned” by Marvel or Disney+. “If Marvel didn’t care about this show, it wouldn’t be out in the world at all. And it definitely would not be out in the world in the form that it is,” Cretton said. In fact, Wonder Man was almost dumped as a tax write-off during the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

“Everybody from Kevin [Feige] on down really loved the tone of the show and loved that it was different, and loved pushing limits. And everybody here loves movies, and that’s what the show is really about,” Cretton said. “So yeah, the internet likes to make up stories and narratives. But I love the passion behind it because people just love the show and want more people to see it.”

Read Next

Marvel’s New Release is An Instant Hit After Near-Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score

Wonder Man Worked Better As a Binge-Watch Series

Some Marvel Studios shows work better as a weekly release, which gets people talking more about them and increases the excitement for new episodes. Daredevil: Born Again is a perfect example of that, as were shows like Agatha All Along and Ironheart, which offered mysteries that unfolded slowly throughout the weeks so fans could speculate and have fun while working through the season. If those shows were dropped all at once, people would have spoiled things on Day 1, and no one would be talking about them on Week 2.

However, Wonder Man is a character-driven story, and it wasn’t so much about a mystery or even a superhero story. This is a tale about one man who just wants to be an actor, and how the world wants to stop him because he is different. The release all at once allowed people to watch it at their own pace, and while there were some spoilers dropped thanks to the binge-watchers who can’t hold their tongues on social media, none of them hurt the viewing of the series.

Wonder Man is one of the best Marvel shows in years, and the full drop allowed people to experience it quickly, which allowed the praise to spread fast, which might help more in this case than the anticipation of new episodes. For a character like Daredevil, people will keep returning every week because they know the hero. For someone that non-comic book fans knew nothing about, Wonder Man needed to be fast and hard, and for this specific title, a binge-watching opportunity was the smartest decision.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!