WONDERS NEVER CEASE
Gadot springs back into action, and forward in time, as Amazonian hero
Three years ago, the first Wonder Woman movie wasn't even in theatres yet, but director Patty Jenkins already knew she wanted to fast-forward the superhero's journey to the U.S. for a proposed sequel.
Wonder Woman 1984 finds Gal Gadot's Diana Prince working as an anthropologist at the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C., and facing off against two iconic villains: Cheetah (Kristen Wiig) and the slithery businessman Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal).
The movie is something of a litmus test for Warner Bros. In the U.S., the studio plans to release all of its 2021 film slate simultaneously in theatres and on its streaming service HBO Max. In Canada, the film's release Dec. 25 in theatres and on demand is, for now, a one-off, with the company planning to debut next year's titles in cinemas before making them available to watch at home.
Q Patty, why did you decide to go to the year 1984?
Jenkins: My memory of Wonder Woman is so shaped by Lynda Carter in the TV show, so there was always something that felt right about the brand of Wonder Woman in that era of pop Americana. So I was dying to bring this Wonder Woman into that same era. And I think what the opulence and excess of the '80s allowed us to do with the storyline was just really, really appealing. It kind of speaks to our modern world without being preachy and literal.
Q Gal, for you, what was the best part of going to 1984?
Gadot: It was a different experience. The feel of it and the way that it looks, visually, than the first movie. It felt like the right change. The first movie we shot was set in 1918 during the First World War and it was greyish and gloomy. So, going to the '80s, and having the colours pop and the culture and the amazing hair, makeup and costumes, it just felt like a good transition.
Q There are some great fashion moments during this movie. What was your favourite?
Jenkins: I'd say the mall and the gala. The gala was really fun because it was like how the rich people lived with the huge, shiny, puffy shoulders and all of that stuff. Then the mall was such a mix of every kind of person you'd see. There were people who were still dressing like it was the '60s and '70s.
Gadot: You know, we had so many fashion moments throughout the movie, there's a montage with Steve (Chris Pine) and a scene when we're in the (subway) and we pass a group of punk rockers with the crazy hair. There were so many different moments, so it was nice to witness it as an actor on set.
Q Why did you want to make sure to include Cheetah?
Jenkins: I love how in certain versions of it she starts out as Wonder Woman's friend. I just thought that was such an interesting way — particularly for the story we were telling — to really create a villain … It was fun to have those slow steps where you're understanding, just like friends having a fight, what is turning this person into a villain.
Q There are some great action sequences. What was your favourite?
Gadot: They were all complex and difficult. You have the mall sequence, which is Wonder Woman, full-blown, in her moment, in the '80s, saving the day. But then you had the fight with Cheetah, which was on the ground, up in the air, in the water … it was a lot of everything. Even the run I do down (Pennsylvania) Avenue, we shut down Penn Avenue for several days and we had an extensive wire rig that pulled me at the same speed as Usain Bolt and yet at the same time I had to hit the ground with my feet, so it looked as if I was actually running. Everything was very, very challenging.
Jenkins: We laughed and laughed and had a blast making this movie, but it was not easy. Every single one of the scenes I felt was like a 16-sided Rubik's Cube. It was so complex, all of it.
Q Gal, tell us more about getting a chance to wear the Golden Eagle Armour.
Gadot: We had to shape up everything in order to perfect it. So even with the Golden Armour, it was such a long process for us to get it to a point where it could look beautiful, but also be practical so we could move in it and do everything we needed to do. Essentially, I feel like it's when women are pregnant and they have their kids and then when they want to have another one, they completely forget about how hard the pregnancy was and how hard the delivery was. They just want to have another baby (laughs). That's how I feel about the Gold Armour. It wasn't the most comfortable costume that I got to wear … but now that I see it, I want to wear it again.”
Q What do you hope people take away from the movie?
Gadot: I want them firstly to enjoy the movie and have fun with it. Patty and I had so many conversations about what the movie's about, even while we were shooting the movie. We went down a rabbit hole where we were saying “Are they going to get it? Is it too complex now?” But the partnership I have with Patty is that we are very much on the same page and we have the same intention. We both realize from before we shot the first Wonder Woman that we have an amazing opportunity to use a huge tent pole with (a character) that is a household name to try — try — to touch people's hearts.
I think that the reason I enjoy making movies is because it makes people feel and what I want to bring, and I don't know if I do it or if it works, but my aspiration is to bring love to people's hearts, especially with this movie.