Who was Juan "Spike" Osorio? Wonder Man tribute explained

Most Marvel heroes strive for greatness, but in Wonder Man, Simon Williams isn't trying to be a superhero. Instead, he hopes to wow the public with his acting, so his biggest fight is keeping those impressive powers of his under wraps.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II's struggling actor is joined by fellow actor slash former "terrorist" Trevor Slattery (Sir Ben Kingsley), who the world remembers as the so-called "Mandarin" from Iron Man 3.

Together, they're fighting to appear in a new remake of the classic Wonder Man superhero film that Simon loved growing up. Questions abound, however, when it turns out that not everyone is who they say they are.

When it comes to questions, another is raised at the end of episode 1 when a dedication appears before the credits roll, which reads: "In memory of Juan 'Spike' Osorio."

So, who is Juan Osorio? And why did Wonder Man pay tribute to him? Read on for everything you need to know about Spike.

Who was Juan "Spike" Osorio?

Osorio was a veteran lighting technician who worked in the electrical department across multiple Hollywood productions. Before Wonder Man, he was credited on a wide array of sci-fi and fantasy projects including The Dark Tower, American Born Chinese, and Marvel's 2018 sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp, plus more grounded fare such as Mayans M.C. and The Conners.

According to interviews with fellow crew members (via The Daily Beast), Osorio worked in the army before moving to Hollywood. Rigging gaffer Dave McGrory explained that Osorio once survived a devastating explosion while serving in the Middle East.

"He was in a Humvee that drove over an IED which exploded. And he basically watched his closest guys die in front of him,” McGrory said. "And there was another firefight in a cave in Afghanistan, where he was wounded with some shrapnel. I know that because he got a scar under his left eye, from rock fragmentation."

McGrory added: "The man made it out of Afghanistan, and didn’t make it out of the studio system."

What happened to Juan "Spike" Osorio?

While working on Wonder Man, Osorio fell through a catwalk at Stage 3 at the Radford Studio Center in Studio City (per Variety). He died on the same day – 6th February 2024.

Osorio, aged 41 at his time of passing, was survived by his wife, industry boom operator Joanne Osorio-Wu, and his mother Zoila Osorio.

Hundreds of people attended a vigil in Burbank to honour Osorio (via ABC7), and Osorio's widow shared a heartfelt message to attendees at the vigil.

"I know Spike would want all of you to know how much he cared for you," Joanne Osorio-Wu said. "Each and every person that he worked with, each and every person that he knew, he wanted to make sure that they were safe, whether they were in his department or not. He was the most important part of my life, and I appreciate you all and the impact that you all had on him."

Kaitlyn Yang, the visual effects supervisor on American Born Chinese, remembered Osorio: "I worked with Spike on my last series. He made sure I had all the lights to make our blue screens work. As many crew have echoed before me, I felt seen and heard in his presence. May he rest in peace."

Marvel issued the following statement: "Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with his family and friends, and our support is behind the investigation into the circumstances of this accident."

Following the tragedy, a Cal/OSHA investigation concluded that the catwalk Osorio fell through had a deteriorated section of wood, which was improperly nailed to a roof support. As a result, Disney was hit with a $36,000 fine and Radford Studio Center was fined $45,000.

As reported by the Los Angeles Times, Osorio’s widow and mother also filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Radford Studio Center seeking unspecified damages, with the family’s lawyer alleging that it "failed to properly maintain, repair and inspect its premises".

Radford’s lawyers disputed the claims and argued that the accident could have been caused by negligence on the part of Osorio or others.

Wonder Man is streaming now on Disney+.

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