Metagenes was an Athenian comic poet active in the late 5th century BCE during the period of Old Comedy. He was a contemporary and rival of Aristophanes and competed in the dramatic festivals of Athens. According to the ancient encyclopedia the Suda, he came from a family of comic poets, being the son of Aristophon and the father of Nicophon. The Suda credits him with writing 11 plays, though only two titles survive with certainty: Thouriopersai and Philothytes. The rest of his work exists only in small fragments preserved by later ancient authors.

These fragments suggest his comedies engaged with contemporary Athenian life, politics, and foreign interests. The title Thouriopersai, for example, references both an Athenian colony in Italy and the Persian Empire, indicating plots that touched on Athens' wider world. Metagenes represents the many successful comic poets of his era whose complete works are now lost. His recorded victories and mentions by contemporaries such as the comic poet Plato confirm he was a recognized figure in the competitive theatrical culture of classical Athens. Modern scholars study such fragmentary authors to understand the full scope of Old Comedy beyond its sole surviving complete playwright, Aristophanes.