Can Wonder Woman buck the odds for superhero movies at the Oscars?

Une super-héroïne à l’assaut d’Hollywood.

Immense succès commercial et critique cet été, Wonder Woman s’apprête à livrer sa plus grande bataille : celle des Oscars. Il faut dire que les super-héros n’ont jamais remporté la statuette du meilleur film, souvent cantonnés aux catégories techniques. L’icône féministe parviendra-t-elle à briser ce plafond de verre ? La course aux votes est lancée…

First she won over critics, stirred up audiences and vanquished the box office. Now Wonder Woman is hoping to do what no superhero before her has done: Crack the Oscars. Warner Bros.’ $821 million-grossing “Wonder

1. to win, won, won over conquérir, séduire / to stir up ici, enthousiasmer / audience public, spectateurs / to vanquish the box office triompher au box-office / to crack ici, entrer (dans la course aux Oscars) / to gross rapporter (recette brute) /

Woman” — the highest-grossing live action film directed by a woman — is swinging its sword for major nominations including best picture, best director for Patty Jenkins, and lead actress for star Gal Gadot.

BREAKING THE CEILING

2. In 2009 Christopher Nolan’s artsy “The Dark Knight” was widely perceived as a best picture and director contender, before nominations morning crushed the Bat’s aspirations. Last year 20th Century Fox’s R-rated “Deadpool” got fan hopes up again. Alas: The Merc with a Mouth failed to secure a single Oscar nomination.

3. But “Wonder Woman,” one of the best-reviewed films of 2017 with a 92% Rotten Tomatoes rating, boasts a zeitgeist-fueled momentum that could help it punch through the film academy’s spandex ceiling, where only four women have ever been nominated for best director and only one woman, Kathryn Bigelow, has ever won (for 2009’s “The Hurt Locker”). Recent infusions of diversity and youth into the academy’s membership might also help the “Wonder Woman” odds.

4. Superhero movies have been banging at Oscar’s door since Nolan reinvented the genre as legitimate art and caught the attention of awards voting bodies. Even though it failed to break into the best picture race, “The Dark Knight” was nominated for eight Oscars and won two, including a posthumous nod for Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker.

5. In a banner year for rallying around women within and outside of the industry, June’s femaleled, female-fronted “Wonder Woman” became emblematic of hope: Feminists in a post-Trump America embraced Gadot’s Diana Prince/Wonder Woman as a strong and overdue screen champion. And comic book fans got the first superhero movie since Nolan’s Batman saga with a serious shot at the big show.

OSCAR RACE

6. Warner Bros. officially debuted a For Your Consideration campaign in October, pushing “Wonder Woman” in 15 categories alongside its other key contenders “Blade Runner 2049,” “Dunkirk” and “The Lego Batman Movie.” Screenings have been set for awards voters in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and London, with screener mailings expected to land soon in voters’ mailboxes. Both Gadot and Jenkins — who will return for the sequel — have hit the glitzy awards trail. 7. Jenkins previously won the Directors Guild of America award for her work on the pilot of AMC’s “The Killing” and won the Spirit award for her debut film “Monster,” which nabbed Charlize Theron an Oscar for lead actress.

8. The one-two punch of Gadot and Jenkins is a potent weapon in Warner Bros.’ For Your Consideration arsenal. It was on display at Variety’s Power of Women luncheon last month, where Gadot honored her “superhuman” director. “Patty represents everything that is good in Hollywood,” said Gadot, who hit screens again this month in “Justice League,” keeping her Wonder Woman fresh in the minds of moviegoers, critics — and awards voters.