Wonder Woman Director Expected Controversy

Screen Rant

Patty Jenkins Expected Wonder Woman's Reception to be More Controversial

By Ana Dumaraog

Published Sep 4, 2017

Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins admits she initially thought that the DC Extended Universe movie wouldn't be as well-received as it was.

Patty Jenkins thought that Wonder Woman would get more of a mixed reception upon its release. Following her brief introduction in last year's Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, DC Extended Universe's latest origin story, featuring Diana of Themyscira, officially launched Gal Gadot as the Amazonian Princess this summer.

The film is the most successful DCEU movie thus far -- both critically and financially. Wonder Woman has received mostly good reviews from critics while the general movie-going audience loved it. In terms of box office, it has already nabbed more than $800 million globally with around $400 million domestic. For Jenkins, not only was the project the perfect comeback since her critically-acclaimed work in Monster, the movie also made her the highest-grossing single female filmmaker to helm a live-action movie. But amidst all the accolades, the 46-year-old admits that she never expected the kind of warm reception that the motion picture received.

Related: Patty Jenkins Clears Up Confusion Over Wonder Woman’s No Man’s Land Scene

Jenkins recently sat down with Superman director Richard Donner for The Director's Cut (via Cinemablend) where the two talked about their respective stints in bringing to life two of the most popular DC superheroes on the big screen. In the conversation, the Wonder Woman director shared that she was not expecting the massive success that her film got.

"But I went into the release of the movie assuming it would be, in best case, a mixed bag. And I sort of braced myself for it, where I thought, well, 'Listen, you're doing a beloved superhero; it's always going to end up being at least 40%, oh you could have done, blah blah blah.' So, the support and positivity that the movie has received, and also just the people wanting to talk about what we wanted to talk about in the movie and not other things, has been stunning."

It is no secret that up until that point, the DCEU had not really taken flight the way Warner Bros. would have liked. Although its last three films: Man of Steel, Batman V Superman, and Suicide Squad were box office hits, their reviews were mostly divisive. And it was on Wonder Woman's shoulders to not only prove itself but redeem the franchise as well.

After successfully debuting in her own standalone, Diana Prince will next appear in DCEU's ensemble film, Justice League. Jenkins, on the other hand, is supposedly in the final stages of negotiations to return for the 2019 Wonder Woman sequel. While no official announcement has been made as of yet, the upcoming gig is expected to catapult her to being the highest-paid female director in Hollywood and with the kind of exceptional work she delivered for Warner Bros., the huge pay raise is justified.