Though it was widely assumed that director Patty Jenkins would return to direct the sequel to her smash hit ‘Wonder Woman’, it wasn’t a given, as she had only signed on for one movie. But after negotiations which were described as “unusually lengthy and tough” as well as “challenging,” Jenkins and Warner Brothers have come to an agreement.
Though the specific figures weren’t disclosed, it is known that Jenkins is now the highest-paid female filmmaker in history. Not only will she direct the sequel, but is co-writing and producing. Reportedly, she will earn in the high seven figures for both writing and directing (somewhere in the vicinity of $7-9 million) plus a backend deal, meaning she will get a cut of the profits from ‘Wonder Woman 2′. Jenkins’ hefty pay day breaks the glass ceiling for female creatives in much the same way as her film did for female action heroes.
Jenkins earned $1M for directing the first ‘Wonder Woman’, so this is an Amazonian leap forward for her. You may recall that Jenkins stepped aboard to helm the film after Michelle McLaren departed over creative differences.
‘Wonder Woman’ opened to $103 million and went on to become the highest-grossing movie of the summer and the second highest-grossing of the year, behind ‘Beauty & The Beast’. It made $410.5M in the US and $405.8 in other territories, bringing its total to $816.3M worldwide. Not only was it a financial smash, but it earned excellent reviews, currently sitting at 92% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
‘Wonder Woman 2’ (or whatever it winds up being called) already has a release date. In a bold move, the second movie will vacate the summer movie season, which proved so lucrative for the first film and will instead open on December 13, 2019.
Jenkins has already revealed that the sequel will be set in the present, which means that most of the supporting cast of the first movie won’t be back for the second. That means Gal Gadot and the Amazons may be the only nod to the first.
Are you glad that Jenkins will be back to helm ‘Wonder Woman 2’? Or is there another director that you would like to see guide the adventures of the Amazing Amazon?
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
