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- Patty Jenkins Denies Walking Away From Wonder Woman 3
New details regarding the cancellation of Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman 3 reveal that Jenkins herself opted to walk away following disagreements with the studio pertaining to the film's script.
The Hollywood Reporter recently broke the news that Wonder Woman 3 was "dead" in its current form. At the time, the outlet reported that Jenkins had recently submitted her treatment for the Wonder Woman threequel, which she co-wrote with Geoff Johns. New DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran -- as well as Warner Bros. Pictures bosses Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy -- reportedly then informed Jenkins that, as it stood, her story for Wonder Woman 3 did not line up with their new (and still evolving) plans for the DC Universe.
According to a new report from Deadline, however, sources familiar with the situation say it was actually Jenkins who decided to depart the project after receiving notes on her treatment from the studio. The outlet says that Jenkins' pitch "had character arc problems which rivaled that of Wonder Woman 1984." Notably, while Jenkins' first Wonder Woman film from 2017 was met with widespread critical acclaim, its 2020 sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, had a harder time winning over critics.
Deadline reports that one rival studio executive commented on "the potential problem" of having "a filmmaker like Gunn" give notes to "an established filmmaker like Jenkins." That said, the outlet states that De Luca and Abdy actually had their concerns regarding Jenkins' Wonder Woman 3 treatment even before Gunn and Safran chimed in on the matter. The entire group then provided notes, at which point Jenkins fought back, defending her vision for the film's character arcs. Jenkins was reportedly given the opportunity to pen a new treatment, though decided to walk away instead.
UPDATE: 2022/12/13 20:27 EST BY NOAH DOMINGUEZ
Patty Jenkins Denies Walking Away From Wonder Woman 3
Patty Jenkins has issued an official statement on Wonder Woman 3's cancellation, asserting that reports that she walked away from the project are incorrect. "This is simply not true," the director wrote. "I never walked away. I was open to considering anything asked of me. It was my understanding there was nothing I could do to move anything forward at this time. DC is obviously buried in changes they are having to make, so I understand these decisions are difficult right now."
While Deadline notes that it was "never anyone's intention to be sexist," the outlet acknowledges that the optics of shelving Wonder Women 3 after already canceling the planned Batgirl movie aren't great for Warner Bros. and DC. However, a new live-action Wonder Woman film could still see the light of day at some point. At this stage, the burning question is if franchise star Gal Gadot would want to do another film without Jenkins' involvement. Interestingly, shortly before news of Wonder Woman 3's cancellation broke, Gadot tweeted, "A few years ago it was announced that I was going to play Wonder Woman. I've been so grateful for the opportunity to play such an incredible, iconic character... Can't wait to share her next chapter with you."
What Does the Future Hold for DC Studios?
Of course, Wonder Woman 3's cancellation was far from the only revelation to come out of the original THR report. The piece also claims that a sequel to Man of Steel is now in flux, despite previously being in development; Henry Cavill's return as Superman is once again up in the air, despite his recent return in Dwayne Johnson's Black Adam; a sequel to Black Adam itself is "unlikely"; and Jason Momoa's time as Aquaman is nearing its end, though he could potentially return to the DCU as Lobo.
The day after the article was published, Gunn took to Twitter to address DC fans' concerns. "So. As for the story yesterday in the Hollywood Reporter, some of it is true, some of it is half-true, some of it is not true, [and] some of it we haven't decided yet whether it's true or not," he wrote. Gunn and Safran are currently preparing to meet with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav regarding their multi-year plan for the DCU.
Source: Deadline