‘1883’: Isabel May to Play Beloved DC Comics Superhero in Wake of ‘Yellowstone’ Spinoff’s Success

Isabel May, who starred in Paramount+’s Yellowstone prequel series 1883 as Elsa Dutton, will star in the upcoming HBO Max movie Wonder Twins. The movie is based on the DC Comics characters once seen as the butt of jokes because they were introduced in a Hannah-Barbera cartoon long before they were integrated into the main DC universe. Riverdale star KJ Apa will join May in the show.

The Wonder Twins were introduced in the 1977 animated series The All-New Super Friends Hour as younger heroes who joined Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman, Superman, and Aquaman to fight crime. They are alien siblings Zan and Jayna, who activate their powers by touching rings and yelling, “Wonder Twin powers, activate!” They are often joined by their pet monkey Gleek.

The characters were eventually brought into DC continuity, appearing in dozens of stories. From 2019 to 2020, they starred in a 12-issue miniseries. David Gallagher and Allison Scagliotti played the twins in the Smallville episode “Idol.” They also appeared in Teen Titans Go!, and their names were referenced in an episode of The Flash.

Adam Sztykiel, who wrote Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s upcoming DC Comics movie Black Adam, is writing and directing Wonder Twins, reports The Hollywood Reporter. Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey of Temple Hill are the producers. Bowen and Godfrey have worked on several young adult projects, including Love, Simon, The Fault in Our Stars, The Maze Runner, and the Twilight movies.

May made her television debut in the 2018-2022 Netflix sitcom Alexa & Katie and had a recurring role as Veronica in CBS’ Young Sheldon. She also starred in Run Hide Fight, and I Want You Back. Her breakout role was Elsa Dutton in 1883. Her character served as the narrator for the Paramount+ series, which starred Tim McGraw and Faith Hill as ancestors of Kevin Costner’s Yellowstone character John Dutton.

As for Apa, he is best known for playing Archie Andrews in The CW’s Riverdale. He debuted in the New Zealand soap Shortland Street before breaking through in Hollywood. His movie credits include A Dog’s Purpose, The Hate U Give, I Still Beleive, Dead Reckoning, and Songbird.

Warner Bros. recently released The Batman to theaters. The next DC Comics movie is the animated DC League of Super-Pets, which opens on July 19. Black Adam hits theaters on Oct. 21 and Shazam! Fury of the Gods follows on Dec. 16. Batgirl, starring Leslie Grace in the title role, is expected to hit HBO Max before the end of this year.