It's Just Movies

— by H.G. WATSON —

Today brought some exciting news to little fanboys and girls everywhere; the team behind “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight” is rumoured to be behind the Superman reboot “Man of Steel,” in addition to “Batman 3” and — brace yourselves — a Justice League movie. Since “Green Lantern” is already in production, and “The Flash” film is looking all the more likely, it means that DC suddenly has a film series that could rival Marvel’s films leading up to “The Avengers.”

So, I’m only left with one question: How long before we get a Wonder Woman movie?

There has been chatter about a Wonder Woman film being in the works since 2001.

Most famously, Joss Whedon was rumoured to be writing the script but was dropped over creative differences in 2007. A script that had Wonder Woman fighting Nazis in the 1940s was turned in to WB in 2008, but shelved in favour of a script to be set in the modern era. Since then, we haven’t heard much.

Warner Brothers apparent lack of enthusiasm for a Wonder Woman film stems from the fact that “Catwoman” and “Elektra” both bombed at the box office and with the critics. It gave the studio cold feet about sinking money into another female-led franchise. Which, to be quite frank, is BS. “Catwoman” and “Elektra” didn’t fail because they had female leads; they failed because they were terrible, terrible movies. “The Spirit” also bombed, but we would never say it was because it was a man in the lead role.

But now that a Justice League film is on the horizon and four of the other main members of the League are getting their own starring vehicles, WB has to start putting a Wonder Woman film into development. Wonder Woman is part of the Holy Trinity of DC superheroes (the other two being Superman and Batman). She is also absolutely iconic. She is, without a doubt, the most well known female superhero ever. She is important enough in the DC mythos to deserve a real film that examines her origins prior to the release of a Justice League film.

Given the mostly positive response to the recent Wonder Woman animated film, there is a real possibility that a Wonder Woman film could be very successful. Wonder Woman has a fairly rich, if convoluted, history. Any decent screenwriter should have enough material to put together a script for a watchable film. The fact that Wonder Woman is so well known is also another factor in her favour. Just the name should be enough of a draw to get some people in the theatre. The same can’t be said of “Elektra,” and while I would love to think the same could be said of “Catwoman,” the reality is that she is at her most popular when she is in Batman’s world. Wonder Woman is perhaps the sole female superhero that can draw a crowd based on her own merits.

So who should get the reigns on a Wonder Woman film? In a dream world, Joss Whedon would be brought back and we would get to see the vision he had for Wonder Woman. Whedon’s track record of creating fantastic female heroes is rivaled by only a few.

But he’s not the only person who could bring Wonder Woman to the big screen. The “Green Lantern” film has comic book writer Geoff Johns on as an advisor; so why not bring on Greg Rucka or Gail Simone to advise on a Wonder Woman film? They know the character better than most of the DC writers roster. As for directors, Kathryn Bigelow has been directing fantastic action films for the last three decades and is incredibly popular right now thanks to her Best Director Oscar nom for “The Hurt Locker.” Imagine what she could do when let loose with one of the most kick ass female superheroes of all time.

However, what will really need to happen is a 100 percent commitment from WB and DC to making a Wonder Woman film. Whedon told the New York Sun that one of the main reasons he walked away from Wonder Woman was a lack of commitment to the project on the part of the studio. Once WB decides that their plan for the DC heroes includes Wonder Woman and they take the steps forward that actually need to happen, the rest will fall in place.

WB needs to include Wonder Woman in their plans for the DC superheroes. And if they can get a film with a solid plot, great characters, and a team that can bring the script to life, they could have a film that will hold its on and be the start of a great franchise.

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Embedded below is the trailer for the DC Universe animated movie “Wonder Woman,” available on blu-ray and DVD.

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Follow H.G. Watson on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HGWatson7.