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Paradise is officially lost, at least for Gal Gadot. The star recently expressed her disappointment that a third Wonder Woman movie with her back as Princess Diana and Patty Jenkins directing did not come to pass. “They told me the opposite!” she said of Wonder Woman 3 on the Happy Sad Confused (via Variety) podcast. “They told me, ‘We’re going to do develop it with you.’”
Shocked though Gadot may have been, we suspect many DC fans were not surprised when news came that there would be a recasting. Even setting aside the disappointment of Wonder Woman 1984, and the fact that James Gunn‘s initial announcement of upcoming projects that he and Peter Safran were doing in the new DCU included Paradise Lost, a fantasy show set on Paradise Island, it seemed unlikely Gadot would return, particularly after Jenkins moved off Wonder Woman 3. More crucical, however, is that a third Wonder Woman movie could not happen in the new DCU because, like Superman and Batman, the character is just too important to carry over from a very different interpretation of this universe.
For those who don’t recall, Gadot’s Wonder Woman debuted in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, seemingly shoehorned into the middle of the conflict between the titular heroes in order to set up the Justice League. Even though Jenkins found a hopeful, uplifting approach to the first Wonder Woman movie, one that even managed to make Gadot’s performance read as ethereal, Diana remained ensconced in the larger plans for the DCEU. She played a central role in both versions of the Justice League, making her just as anchored to the crossover movies as Henry Cavill’s Superman and Ben Affleck’s Batman.
As she should be. Wonder Woman has long been understood as part of the DC Trinity, the three central figures in the comic book universe. She splits the difference between Superman’s optimism and Batman’s brooding humanity, giving us a character who longs to inspire “the world of man” but also understands all too well the desire for war. No proper representation of the DC Universe exists without Wonder Woman at the center. Which is exactly why Gadot could not return.
In the same way that David Corenswet’s affable and scrappy Superman has nothing to do with the sad, lonely god that Cavill played, Gadot’s Wonder Woman does not seem tailored to the universe Gunn is building in this decade. True, Gadot’s Wonder Woman had more sweetness than any other DCEU character—recall her delight at seeing a baby in the first film, or urging people to choose their best selves in the sequel. But she’s too tied to the brooding Batman and Superman with whom she was introduced. If they go, she must go too. It’s a pity, but it also leaves room for a different take on Wonder Woman.
Of course, at this point, someone will point out that Gunn’s DCU has carried over characters from the previous regime, particularly those involved with his first movie for the company, The Suicide Squad. Viola Davis’s Amanda Waller, Joel Kinnaman’s Rick Flag, and Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn all first appeared in the David Ayer movie Suicide Squad, which also featured appearances by Ezra Miller’s Flash and Affleck’s Batman. Furthermore, the events of Peacemaker‘s first season are still canon to the DCU, which includes a finale where Miller’s Flash and Jason Momoa’s Aquaman appear.
However, that doesn’t appear to be as big of a problem as one would think. Gunn’s DCU is a soft reboot of the past, so that some parts are canon and others are not, even if there are some similarities. Season two of Peacemaker opened with a montage of scenes from the first season, including the part in the finale when other heroes finally arrive, just as Peacemaker and the 11th Street Kids have defeated the aliens. However, in season two, it’s the Justice Gang from Superman arriving, complete with Hawkgirl, Mister Terrific, and Guy Gardner.
As that retcon shows, Gunn is perfectly capable and willing to rewrite the past and retain things from previous versions of the universe. But Wonder Woman is too important of a character to just hand wave away. She deserves a proper introduction, and she deserves to have a place of prominence in the new universe.
Which she may be getting sooner rather than later. We’ve long known that Adria Arjona has been cast for the Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow, which will see several heroes involved in the fight against Brainiac, including Blue Beetle (another returnee from the previous universe), and the Green Lantern John Stewart. After initial rumblings that Arjona would be playing the space Princess Maxima, signs seem to indicate that she’ll instead be taking on the role of Wonder Woman.
If Arjona is indeed going to be Wonder Woman, then Man of Tomorrow is the perfect place for her to join the universe. The entire conceit of Brainiac attacking while ARGUS is sending metahumans off-planet to Salvation means that she’ll have a reason to finally emerge from her secluded home on Themyscira, and that she’ll have a stage to distinguish herself among the heroes.
That’s the way to bring Wonder Woman into the new DCU, far better than simply retreading a path that no longer makes sense for the universe.
The post Wonder Woman 3 Could Never Happen in the New DCU appeared first on Den of Geek.
