Wonder Woman star Gal Gadot says that she didn't know what role she was auditioning for when she was doing a camera test for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. After the blockbuster success of Man of Steel in 2013, the DCEU was born with the addition of Batman and Wonder Woman to the mix in 2016 with Batman v Superman. And in competitive superhero movie marketplace where casting is everything, director Zack Snyder was saddled with the monumental task of finding the perfect Wonder Woman to play opposite Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck.
He ended up going with Gal Gadot. The former Miss Israel made a big impact in Dawn of Justice and is set to play an even bigger role in the DCEU going forward with her own solo movie and Justice League coming in 2017 alone. Although she was cast in Snyder's film, most involved at DC are happy, with Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins saying she was the perfect choice.
Talking with W Magazine about playing the iconic DC Comics superhero first made famous by Lynda Carter on the TV series in the 1970s, the actress says landing the role of Wonder Woman wasn't easy – beginning with the fact that she didn't know she was in the running to play her. Gadot says:
"When I auditioned for Batman v Superman, I didn’t know it was for Wonder Woman. The director, Zack Snyder, asked me to do a camera test. That was torture. They were looking at six or seven girls, and we were all in separate trailers and were told to stay inside until they called us. Waiting is my enemy Number One, and I was losing my mind. So, I decided to put on Beyoncé. Who runs the world? Girls! I just started to dance, and I let my anxiety go. Thank you, Beyoncé!"
True, it seems now that Gadot is a natural to play Diana Prince and her superhero alter ego – duo roles that have catapulted her to international superstardom as result – but it wasn't unreasonable for Snyder to request a blind audition from the actress when he was casting Batman v Superman. While Gadot showed tremendous promise with her big screen debut as Gisele in Fast & Furious in 2009 and became a valuable part of the franchise by the time she met her heroic demise in Fast & Furious 6 in 2013, she hadn't quite attained A-list status yet.
That's all changed now, of course, thanks to Gadot's stunning debut in Batman v Superman, and she's more than earned the right to headline the Wonder Woman solo movie in June. With Justice League around the corner in November and a lot of hope pinned on her to reenergize the franchise, it's a comfort for fans to know the role of the Amazon warrior is in more than capable hands (and dancing feet – thanks to some inspiration from Beyoncé).
Source: W Magazine
