The Flickering Myth writing team give their thoughts on Gal Gadot’s casting as Wonder Woman in Batman vs. Superman…
In order to make sure The Amazing Spider-Man 2 trailer had as little impact as possible, Variety dropped a huge news story yesterday that Fast & Furious star Gal Gadot will be playing Wonder Woman in the upcoming Batman vs. Superman. How big of a role will she play? Will this lead to a solo movie? Will she be able to pull the character off? The Flickering Myth writing team give their thoughts…
Anthony Donovan Stokes: If they were going for the most unremarkable choice possible this was a major success.
Luke Owen: This is exactly what Anghus was writing about in his Amazing Spider-Man 2 article. It’s simply fan service to compete with Avengers to add a non-developed Wonder Woman into a movie that already features Batman and Superman. And if rumours are to be believed, we’re getting Nightwing and Flash too! Too much too soon? Are DC blowing their load on one movie?
If they put 100% focus on story and character and NOT just throw characters on screen and expect us to like it, I am so in for it because this could be a superb film. I can’t comment on her acting ability but as for her casting, I just hope she doesn’t get the Shailene Woodley treatment from Internet “fans”.
Oliver Davis: I enjoyed looking at her in the Fast and Furious movies. Also, there’s a ‘Waiting for Godot’ joke in here, but I can’t word it properly.
Luke Owen: Her name does sound like a Cyborg superhero that would be a secondary character in the DC Universe.
Thomas Harris: Snyder has a gift a directing women…Said no one ever. It’s happening, may as well ready yourselves for an overly sexualised and vulnerable hero played by an impossibly attractive female star.
Alice Mary Rush: I’ve never seen her act in anything before, so I can’t really comment on that.
But I’m just frustrated that one of the most iconic female super heroes is basically (what it seems like at the moment) being used as a supporting character in a movie with two very strong male leads. With films like The Hunger Games I really thought we were making strides towards accepting female leads in action style movies, and this just seems like an annoying step back.
Gary Collinson: I think Wonder Woman really ought to have had her own origin movie, and then they could have used her in a Trinity / Justice League movie. Unless they’re just going to have her appearing as Diana in a brief cameo, they’re going to have to explain all about the Amazons, introduce Batman, introduce The Flash, continue Superman’s story… it’s going to be a lot to cram into a movie that’s starting to look like Justice League Origins. Have a feeling Man of Steel fans might feel short-changed by this “sequel”.
Saying that, I must add that I am happy we’ll finally get to see Wonder Woman on the big screen. It’s way, way overdue.
Tom Jolliffe: I bet when all is said and done, the final film won’t be as good as the faux trailer from Jesse Johnson earlier this year. As for that casting, it’s not massively inspiring, but not being a huge Wonder Woman fan I won’t be crying over it. She’s good looking but can she lead a film? I’m not sure.
Martin Deer: Wonder Woman should have had her own movie – but this isn’t about women in movies. They don’t even trust Superman to carry his own film anymore which is why Man of Steel is getting all these extra characters in it including their heavy hitter, Batman. So there’s no way a character like Wonder Woman was getting her own solo film after Man of Steel. Yes she should have had her own solo film, but Warner Bros. have no faith in anything over than Batman, so I think taking this as a knock on how Warner Bros. sees female lead films isn’t the primary issue. Hopefully she’ll get a solo film somewhere down the line. Just as hopefully one of the other eight hundred characters will too.
As for Gal Gadot, well firstly to anyone saying she’s too skinny; I’m pretty sure women are allowed to work out. As for her acting abilities, again Man of Steel didn’t earn as much money as Warner Bros. hoped, hence Man of Steel 2 is now Justice League. They ain’t casting a name when it has the potential to bomb. It bombs, recast without much harm. She nails it? Well then she’s nailed it and jobs a good’n.
Anthony Donovan Stokes: If she makes a small cameo in Batman vs. Superman or whatever they’re calling it to lead into a Wonder Woman movie, I have no problem with that.
Martin Deer: Well if you actually think about it, what else would their plan be? They’re going team up first, solo films second. No faith in the other characters means they’re won’t be any solo films for any character until they’ve tried the team up and seen a success.
Anthony Donovan Stokes: I have no idea what DC is doing; they’re like a chicken with the head cut off.
Anghus Houvouras: The bad news: Superman vs. Batman is becoming a massive clusterf***. The good news: Gal Gadot will be filling millions of spank banks for years to come.
Anthony Donovan Stokes: Man of steel was a clusterf*** in my opinion, so this is going to be much worse.
And I want to tread carefully here, is it okay to say she doesn’t have the physique?
Luke Owen: Gyms exist for women too.
Gary Collinson: Let’s just be thankful Snyder didn’t turn to Vanessa Hudgens.
Luke Owen: Hey, I like Vanessa Hudgens…
Ozzy Armstrong: As someone who isn’t a big fan of Justice League or Wonder Woman, I don’t think I could care any less for this. If it’s mildly entertaining, I’d be surprised. But I can just see it being a slightly better version of a made-for-TV-movie
Chris Cooper: Absolutely fine with her casting. We’ve not seen a costume or what the results of some time in the gym and the make up chair are yet so why is everyone getting bent out of shape? Shouldn’t we be pleased that we’re getting Wonder Woman in a film? It’s about time.
If the script is weak or her acting turns out to be poor, then be annoyed. Throw your toys out the pram. But we’ve seen none of that so far, and bar possible over-crowding there is nothing to suggest it will be bad. Gadot may not even have a big part to play yet. We just don’t know enough yet to make a good shout on it. Whilst it can go both ways, lets choose to be positive. We have a Batman, Superman, and now a Wonder Woman. It might not be how we wanted it to go, but lets enjoy it.
Who would have thought that the guy who starred in Not Another Teen Movie would go on to be a fantastic Captain America? Or that the stars of Home and Away would be Thor and Joker? Give her a chance.
Tom Jolliffe: Is a Wonder Woman film really in that high a demand? I can’t see this making huge amounts of money. History might suggest too that a character like this will be treated badly and be given a forgettable film. Sometimes with some of these Marvel/DC films it’s almost a case of just getting it done, without much consideration in how to make a genuinely good film. That would be my main concern if I were a Wonder Woman fan (which I’m not).
As for Gadot, the physique is largely irrelevant, we’ve seen plenty of changes in tact with this films (forgoing the bright coloured suits in the X Men franchise initially caused a stink for example, but was largely accepted when the first two films were decent), I’d be more worried about her acting ability. Everyone has the propensity to surprise, but can she do more than pout and look pretty? And I’m not saying this as a dig against some of the female casting in films over the years, this is an issue that’s always blighted Hollywood (male and female), but is particularly common these days. Casting on looks can often be a mistake. We shall see. My gut feeling on this film is that it’ll veer into Daredevil/Fantastic Four/Green Lantern territory, more than Batman Begins or Spider-Man.
J-P Wooding: I don’t know if a standalone Wonder Woman film would do as well as Supes or the Bat. For me, Captain America: The First Avenger was average and served as more of an intro to a character in an The Avengers movie and nothing more. The Winter Soldier will build on his part in Avengers and be a lot better. This reversal could work if her role is sufficient to generate enough interest to warrant her own movie. As long as the part is written well enough and the character’s abilities utilised, then I’m sure the choice of actress will be fine.
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So, there you have it. A mostly positive reaction to her casting, but questions raised on her addition to a movie in which Batman and Superman are bound to be the main stars.
What do you think of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman?
Batman vs. Superman is set for release in 2015 and will also feature Henry Cavil as Superman, Ben Affleck as Batman, Laurence Fishburne as Perry White, Diane Keaton as Martha Kent and Amy Adams as Lois Lane.