As director Jenkins signs up, Gal Gadot heads to ‘Wonder Woman 2’
Patty Jenkins said to become highest-paid female director for the sequel, set for end of 2019, with Warner Bros agreeing to a fee of $7 to $9 million
After lengthy negotiations, “Wonder Woman” director Patty Jenkins reportedly signed a deal with Warner Bros. to make the sequel, with a fee that will see her become the highest-paid female director of all time.
Gal Gadot is already on board to star in the sequel to “Wonder Woman,” the outstanding success of the summer, The Hollywood Reporter said Monday. The Israeli actress “already is attached to the follow-up,” the report said.
With “Wonder Woman” grossing over $800 million worldwide, both Gadot and Jenkins, who each only had a one-movie deal, had the upper hand in negotiations for the next installment of the story of the Amazonian princess.
Sources told the Hollywood Reporter that after “challenging” negotiations, Jenkins will earn directing and writing fees in the region of $7 to $9 million, making her the highest-paid female director in history. She was reportedly paid only $1 million for the first movie.
Gadot has reportedly also signed for an undisclosed sum to play the Diana Prince in the sequel, which is tentatively set to be released on December 13, 2019.
But the Goddess of Truth will return to the silver screen before that, appearing in the upcoming “Justice League” this November.
It’s not unusual for high-power studios to start new directors off with one-film deals these days, and Gadot’s initial deal was standard for an emerging actress. But with global earnings of $813 million, the two have become hot property in Hollywood.
Jenkins has been up-front about how she feels about getting back into the director’s chair. In an interview with the Toronto Sun over a month before the film’s June 2 release, she was already planning Diana Prince’s next steps.
“I’m excited for her to come to America and become the Wonder Woman we are all familiar with from having grown up around her as an American superhero,” she told the Sun. “I’d like to bring her a little farther along into the future and have a fun, exciting storyline that is its own thing.”
There is little doubt that the film wouldn’t have achieved such instantaneous blockbuster status without Gadot’s on-camera charisma, and she’s as celebrated abroad as she is at home — where she is touted as one of Israel’s best exports.
Critics and audiences (except, perhaps, in Lebanon and Jordan) have enthused about the 32-year-old mother of two, who has been celebrated as a symbol of female strength. There has been a barrage of analysis on the role of feminism in the film — most of it positive.
While director Jenkins was excited about “Wonder Woman” from the beginning, she was initially somewhat less enthused with the studio’s choice of star. In an interview with Playboy she revealed that she was initially disappointed with the fact that she wasn’t able to cast the role herself. But, she acknowledged, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
“Frankly, I think they did a better job than I could have because I don’t know that I would have scoured the earth as hard to find her,” she told the magazine. “I don’t know that I would’ve looked internationally. I would have just looked for an American girl.”
There are rumors swirling that the “Wonder Woman” director could be in the running for the Superman movie “Man of Steel 2,” but even to super fans, they seem like a bit of a stretch.
“It’s no secret that I love Superman but right now I’m just happy doing Wonder Woman,” Jenkins said during a recent Reddit AMA.
Yaakov Schwartz contributed to this report.
The Times of Israel Community.