WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Wonder Woman 1984, in theaters and on HBO Max now.
One of the most surprising parts of Wonder Woman 1984 was the appearance of corrupt businessman Simon Stagg (portrayed by Oliver Cotton) whose cameo, though brief, was an unexpected one. Surrounding himself with like-minded people is what links the no-nonsense CEO of world-leading tech company Stagg Industries to the main villain of WW84, Maxwell Lord. Having invested in Lord’s company, Black Gold Cooperative, Stagg appears briefly to confront Lord about his company’s less than fruitful results. Stagg degrades his fellow business tycoon, demanding that his investments be repaid. A short time later, his stint on the big screen comes to an end when he falls victim to Lord’s plan and is arrested for tax fraud.
Stagg’s comic counterpart, however, had a significantly longer run, having first appeared in 1965’s The Brave and the Bold Vol. 1 #57 by Bob Haney, Ramona Fradon, Charles Paris, and George Kashdan as a scientist and businessman whose fortune derived from investments and inventions. A master manipulator fond of all things profitable, Stagg expertly hid his misdeeds behind a facade seemingly focused on philanthropy.
Driven by greed and jealousy, Stagg’s only real redeeming quality is his love for his daughter, Sapphire. His desire to do right by her is challenged when she falls for soldier-for-hire Rex Mason who Stagg sends to Egypt to retrieve an ancient artifact, the Orb of Ra. Upon exposure to radioactive meteor rays, Mason is transformed into Metamorpho, the Element Man, whose abilities include altering his body into chemical elements at will. Ever the businessman, Stagg agrees to help find a cure upon recognizing the chance to profit from Mason’s newfound powers. Stagg’s continued greed proved troublesome, and it was his opening of a portal to the Dark Multiverse which led to the creation of the Terrifics. It is therefore apt that his death occurs within the series of the same name.
In Gene Luen Yang and Sergio Davilla's The Terrifics storyline, “The Day Simon Stagg Died Part Two,” Stagg sabotages Mister Terrific’s latest invention, an experimental light rail, by cutting a deal with the demon Sleroku the Blind who transforms the train’s passengers into subterranean creatures. As the T-Council are called in to help (Blue Beetle, the Atom, Man-Bat, father-daughter duo Tom and Tesla Strong, and scientists Shay Veritas and Silas Stone), a hidden Stagg revokes his pact with the evil entity. Unhappy with the betrayal, Sleroku attacks Stagg, leaving him for dead. In “The Tomorrow War, Part One”, it is revealed that Stagg is still alive (though barely). However, despite Metamorpho converting his hand into lung tissue, Stagg eventually falls victim to his injuries.
The end of Stagg’s reign of terror was ultimately short-lived when an interruption at Simon’s funeral revealed that there was, in fact, another heir in Sapphire’s brother, Sebastian. Laying claim to what he believed was his, Sebastian quickly established his position as successor and seized control of Stagg Industries.
In Justice League: Endless Winter #1 by Andy Lanning, Ron Marz, Howard Porter, and Marco Santucci, Sebastian’s decision to drill in the Arctic Circle in search of Kryptonian crystals results in the reawakening of the exiled Norse god, the Frost King who subjects the world to some rather icy consequences. If this is anything to go by, Sebastian looks certain to emulate his father by dreaming big and going after what he wants -- no matter the ramifications.