Gal Gadot has addressed the end of her time as Wonder Woman in a new podcast interview, saying that the executives now leading DC Studios initially told her they wanted to develop a third solo film with her. The actress acknowledged that the project ultimately fell apart, and she did not hide her feelings about how the transition was managed by the studio.

When asked directly whether James Gunn and Peter Safran ever told her they planned to take the character in a different direction, Gadot said that was not what she heard during their conversations. “They told me the opposite!” she said. “They told me, ‘We’re going to develop it with you. The third [movie]...’”

Gadot previously shared a similar account in 2023 interviews, saying she had met with the new heads of DC Studios and was reassured about her future in the role. She recalled being told, in what she described as a direct quote: “You’re in the best hands. We’re going to develop ‘Wonder Woman 3’ with you. [We] love you as Wonder Woman— you’ve got nothing to worry about.”

At the time, people with knowledge of the situation pushed back on that characterization. The official word from within the studio was that Wonder Woman 3 was not actively in development, that Gadot had not been promised another sequel, and that no definitive conversation had taken place about the character continuing into the new DC Universe.

The conflicting accounts have remained a source of confusion for fans ever since. Gadot’s latest remarks add another layer to that history because she still maintains that the new DC leadership initially signaled she would remain involved.

Gadot first entered the world of DC as Wonder Woman in Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. She went on to lead two standalone films directed by Patty Jenkins: 2017’s Wonder Woman and 2020’s Wonder Woman 1984. Gadot also appeared alongside the rest of the Justice League in the 2017 ensemble film and made cameo appearances in other DC titles, including Shazam! Fury of the Gods.

Before Gunn and Safran arrived, a third Wonder Woman movie was in development with Jenkins returning as director and Gadot expected to play the title role again. That project had become one of the anchor movies of DC’s old shared universe, especially after the first film became a cultural milestone and a major box office success. The sequel was released during the pandemic and faced a more complicated reception, but there was still enough interest in the character that a threequel seemed like a natural next step.

By the time the new DC leadership was installed, the studio was in the middle of a broad reset. Many of the actors associated with the earlier era were being phased out, and Wonder Woman was not the only high-profile casualty. Gadot said she ultimately was not shocked by the outcome because she had watched how other exits were handled.

“I saw the way everybody else was handled,” she explained. “The Henry situation was not handled elegantly, to say the least. Same with Patty. It was not handled elegantly. We’re all adults and it’s all good. It’s not even about [James Gunn and Peter Safran]. They are there and they’re there to do what they believe in. It’s all good.”

Gadot’s mention of Henry Cavill points to one of the messiest parts of the DC transition. Cavill returned as Superman in the post-credits scene of Black Adam, and his return was announced publicly with a sense of excitement. Fans who had campaigned for Cavill to get another chance as Superman saw that as a major victory. But the new DC regime soon made it clear that Cavill was not part of its plans.

Instead, the studio moved forward with a fresh version of Superman played by David Corenswet. Cavill’s exit became a major talking point because it followed such a public return. Gadot’s comments suggest she saw that sequence of events as emblematic of a wider issue with how the original DC era was being wound down.

Patty Jenkins’ exit from Wonder Woman was also awkward. News broke in December 2022 that the third Wonder Woman film had fallen apart after studio leadership passed on Jenkins’ treatment for the sequel. The timing was notable because it happened just as Gunn and Safran were taking over DC Studios, which led many to assume the project was being cleared away for the new direction.

Jenkins pushed back on the idea that she had left willingly. She said at the time: “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.”

Jenkins later said she believed the Wonder Woman story was over “for the time being, easily forever.” She expressed sympathy for the enormity of what Gunn and Safran were trying to build, but she also made it clear that the decision had not come from her side. “They aren’t interested in doing any ‘Wonder Woman’ for the time being,” Jenkins said at the time. “It’s not an easy task, with what’s going on with DC. James Gunn and Peter Safran have to follow their own heart into their own plans. I don’t know what they are planning on doing or why, so I have sympathy for what a big job it is and they have to follow their heart and do what they’ve got planned.”

Gadot’s latest interview suggests she agrees with the idea that Gunn and Safran had a different creative vision and were not simply trying to undo the work of the people who came before them. At the same time, she was honest about the fact that the studio’s communication could have been better. Her tone throughout the conversation was measured rather than bitter, even as she expressed frustration with the lack of clarity.

Asked about the possibility of returning to Wonder Woman in the future, Gadot did not seem especially eager to go back. She pointed to her personal life as the main reason. Gadot has four children, and she explained that taking on a major superhero movie would require a significant amount of time away from them. “For me to go to do another Wonder Woman, I am not sure I would at this point in my life with four children and different schools and all of that,” she said. “To check out from all of them for such a long period of time, it doesn’t work for my life anymore at this point.”

That answer is a notable shift from the years when Gadot seemed fully committed to the idea of continuing as Wonder Woman. The role made her one of the most recognizable stars in the superhero genre and gave her a franchise that few other actors in the DC universe had. Still, she appears to have accepted that this chapter is over and that her priorities have changed.

Her comments also capture some of the difficulty of reboot culture, where actors can be told one thing by one wave of executives and something very different by the next. The shift at DC Studios was always going to leave some actors feeling caught in the middle. Gadot has now made it clear that she felt that tension herself, even if she ultimately holds no hard feelings toward the people now in charge.

For fans of the older DC films, the idea of a Wonder Woman 3 with Gadot and Jenkins together will remain one of the great what-ifs of that era. The first film proved that a solo Wonder Woman movie could be both commercially successful and emotionally resonant. Gadot’s casting was widely praised, and Jenkins brought the legendary character to the screen in a way that felt distinctly different from the other

Source: Variety News