Catwoman
Though its incredibly likely Catwoman will appear in Gotham City Sirens, this is a character who truly does deserve her own film. Yes, she already had one in 2004’s Catwoman, but that’s Catwoman in name only (it doesn’t even feature Selina Kyle in the role) and did such a disservice to the character most fans and audiences rightly pretend it doesn’t exist.
Catwoman is one of Batman’s most known foes, but she’s also an anti-hero. Despite her penchant for burglary, Catwoman does have a soft side as she helps people who she considers friends and, in most iterations, is an animal rights activist. She still enjoys stealing, though, and a Catwoman film would be a great opportunity to make an Ocean’s 11-like superhero film. One such influence could be the graphic novel Selina’s Big Score, written and drawn by the late Darwyn Cooke, which sees Catwoman planning a big heist while a private eye is hot on her trail.
Zatanna
Much like how Doctor Strange focuses on the magical side of the Marvel universe, so too does Zatanna in DC. The daughter of a very famous magician, Zatanna is a strong practitioner in magic and has the confidence of many Justice Leaguers, especially Batman.
A film based around Zatanna could offer something quite different not just for the DCEU, but for the genre as a whole. Along with being a member of the Justice League and some other groups, she is a travelling magician that goes all over the world. She’s also a fairly young, giving her film the potential to skewer to a younger audience by being a bit more light and fun than perhaps some of the other films.
Of course, if Justice League Dark ever does get made, Zatanna will more than likely appear in that film alongside several other magical heroes in the DC universe.
Spider-Woman
Unlike Kamala Khan, Spider-Woman’s name is not a homage to Marvel’s resident wall-crawler, but is her own superhero. As a child, Jessica Drew fell very ill and her father used an experimental treatment to help cure her and put her in an induced sleep to let the cure incubate. When she awoke, she had only aged to her 17th year and discovered she had gained superpowers similar to a spider because of the treatment.
Her joy at being alive didn’t last long, however, as her family had passed away and she was soon captured by HYDRA, the evil organization out to rule the world. Jessica spent years somewhat brainwashed, believing HYRDA was not the organization it really was and acted as their assassin. After nearly killing Nick Fury, though, she becomes a superhero and fights with the Avengers on multiple occasions.
A Spider-Woman film would not only tie into Marvel’s larger narrative involving HYDRA, but also has some potential crossover with Spider-Man and the Avengers. There are a couple different paths they can take, such as her time as a bounty hunter, international spy or private detective.
Even if Marvel chooses not to go with the traditional Spider-Woman, Sony could always adapt the ‘Spider-Gwen’ version that sees Gwen Stacey bitten by the radioactive spider instead of Peter Parker. Not only would it be separate, but it would be an interesting take on the character and that film could potentially crossover with Silver & Black and Venom since those films’ ties to the MCU are tenuous at best, despite what Amy Pascal may say.
Those are some of my picks for which female super heroes could be well suited for the live action treatment. Who would you like to see appear on the big screen? Let us know in the comments below…
Ricky Church
Originally published June 29, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
