Kingsley says Marvel’s new series is like “a biopic of Trevor” as well as a “two-hander” with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s character Simon Williams.

Ben Kingsley reveals Wonder Man follows Trevor Slattery before and after he became the Mandarin (exclusive)

Kingsley says Marvel's new series is like "a biopic of Trevor" as well as a "two-hander" with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II's character Simon Williams.

By Sydney Bucksbaum

Sydney Bucksbaum

Sydney Bucksbaum is a staff writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2019 and is a published author. Her work has previously appeared in *TV Guide Magazine*, E! News/E! Online, *The Hollywood Reporter*, Mashable, Bustle, IGN, DCComics.com, Inverse, *The Daily Northwestern*, and more.

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December 16, 2025 12:00 p.m. ET

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Sir Ben Kingsley as Trevor Slattery on 'Wonder Man'. Credit:

Suzanne Tenner/MARVEL

Trevor Slattery (Ben Kingsley) is ready for his big comeback.

The struggling actor who pretended to be the Mandarin in *Iron Man 3 *returns for Marvel's upcoming Disney+ series *Wonder Man*, and ** has your exclusive sneak peek at the show that Kingsley calls "a journey of two guys in Hollywood that's really entertaining."

"We look at the casting process, we look at the auditioning process, we look at the directing process, the writing process," Kingsley says of the Los Angeles-set series. "We look at the ego traps. We look at the seductive side of fame. We look at everything that's beautiful and good, and also everything that's vulnerable and rather unhealthy, but in a very entertaining, non-judgmental way."

Ben Kingsley and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II in 'Wonder Man'.

MARVEL/Suzanne Tenner

*Wonder Man* stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (*Aquaman, Watchmen*) as the titular character, real name Simon Williams, who — like Trevor — is a struggling actor auditioning for the superhero show-within-a-show. As art imitates life, Simon will eventually get superpowers himself.

"Every episode is full of surprises," Kingsley says. "I don't think it's like anything out there at the moment."

The Oscar-, Grammy-, and Emmy-winning actor reveals that *Wonder Man* "is essentially a two-hander" for new character Simon and Trevor, who was last seen in *Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings *as the trapped court jester for the true Mandarin (Tony Leung).

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Ben Kingsley in 'Wonder Man'.

MARVEL/Suzanne Tenner

"He manages to escape from the real Mandarin and from Shang-Chi land, and he flies back into Hollywood to give his career a second chance and to prove to his dear mother Dorothy, who always had faith in him and his talents, that he was truly the actor his mom always hoped he would be and that he always aspired to be," Kingsley reveals. "And a series of extraordinary events place him exactly in that space, which crowns him and compromises him at the same time. He's pulled in two directions at the same time."

While Kingsley is wary of revealing spoilers, he teases that Trevor will be "faced with a terrible dilemma: he can reach his ambition, but it's at a terrible cost. He has a choice to make — it's fascinating."

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Trevor and Simon initially become friends and bond over the life of an aspiring actor. But Kingsley warns of impending trouble for the twosome as Trevor's ambition once again rears its ugly head.

"[Trevor] sees in Simon a friend, a colleague, but he also sees Simon as someone he can absolutely exploit for his own ends," Kingsley teases. "It's quite a classic, basic human condition story. You are associated with somebody and you have an affinity with that person, but at the same time, you know that you're going to have to exploit that person to get to where you need to be."

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Back when Marvel boss Kevin Feige first pitched Kingsley about playing Trevor in *Iron Man 3* as the fake leader of the Ten Rings criminal organization, the actor never imagined it would become his longest-running role. But after 12 years, featuring his surprise return in *Shang-Chi* as well as starring in the Marvel short *All Hail the King* (which picks up after Trevor was thrown in jail), Kingsley says *Wonder Man *explores the character in more depth than ever before.

"During *Shang-Chi*, Kevin Feige and [director] Destin [Daniel Cretton] suggested to me the possibility of Trevor reappearing for the fourth time in a TV series," Kingsley says. "We didn't even know the title, and I said, 'I'd be thrilled.' I love revisiting Trevor — there's so many layers to him. [This] series does see Trevor before he got the role of Mandarin, and then of course after, so it's a real biography — it's a biopic of Trevor in four episodes."

*Wonder Man* premieres Jan. 27 on Disney+.

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