by Jeanne Sutton
25th Nov 2014
25th Nov 2014
wonder woman standing on rock
After an endless decade of male superheroes, audiences will finally get a film with a female lead. While Captain America: The Winter Soldier gave Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow some of the limelight her kickass and complicated character deserves, the fact that strong women are sidekicks first has been rankling us for the past few popcorn summers. Might Wonder Woman finally herald a revolution in Hollywood boardrooms?
Yesterday Warner Bros? announced that Michelle MacLaren will develop and direct a Wonder Woman feature length movie. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the so-far-unnamed writers will work closely with MacLaren to bring the story to the screen. Israeli actress Gal Gadot will star as the titular heroine. Gadot is reprising the role after donning the iconic costume in the upcoming Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, which stars Ben Affleck as the caped crusader. The first picture of Gadot as Wonder Woman was released last July, just days before she publicly expressed her support of the IDF during the Gaza campaign that saw about 500 Palestinian children killed.
MacLaren has a strong record in television, having worked on Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead, and is one of the first women in recent years to helm such a big-budget comic book production. Joss Whedon, who currently directs The Avengers series, was the last big name attached to a screen adaptation of the Amazonian princess? tale. However, MacLaren’s appointment isn’t too much of a surprise, with reports linking her to the tentative production last August.
The Hollywood Reporter also adds that the studio met with other female directors – namely Jennifer Kent (The Babadook) and Lesli Linka Glatter (Homeland).
Zack Snyder is one of the producers and has been responsible for a lot of movies where women fighting baddies wear unsuitable for-that-kind-of-workplace clothing – see Watchmen and Sucker Punch, or rather don’t. He did direct Man of Steel where Oscar-winner Amy Adams was a pretty decent Lois Lane.
Expect to see Wonder Woman on screens the summer of 2017.
Follow Jeanne Sutton on Twitter @jeannedesutun