Cheetah or Maxwell Lord? Who Wonder Woman 1984's MAIN Villain Is

Who will be Wonder Woman 1984's main villain? Patty Jenkins reunites with Gal Gadot in the next DC Extended Universe which will be another period piece like the 2017 smash hit, Wonder Woman. This time, however, decades have passed and Diana Prince finds herself in the middle of the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Aside from the global turmoil, the Themysciran princess will also be facing two new foes: Barbara Ann Minerva (Kristen Wiig) and Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal).

Warner Bros.' marketing for Wonder Woman 1984 has kept details about both villains scarce. Given what's revealed thus far, however, Minerva will initially have a friendly relationship with Diana, but after assuming her persona as Cheetah, they become enemies. Maxwell, on the other hand, is a successful businessman just like he was in the comic books. In the sequel, his MO is to sell people dreams, while his main motivation throughout the story is greed. It's still unclear what the relationship between the pair will be, but official stills confirm that they're somehow associated with each other.

Having two villains in a superhero film is not a new thing, but Jenkins explained that the original plan was for Cheetah to be Wonder Woman 1984's primary villain. As they're crafting the sequel's story, however, they realized that they need Lord for the narrative to work. Given what's known about the movie thus far, which one is really going to be Diana's main foe in the film?

Jenkins' comment about Wonder Woman 1984's villain status implies that there's a strong narrative link between the pair — almost as if their arcs are intrinsically connected. This is backed up by a promo shot featuring Cheetah and Lord in a rather intimate setting; meanwhile, a separate image shows Cheetah coming to Lord's rescue while the businessman is tied up with Diana's Lasso of Truth. Between this and the idea that Minerva will initially be a sympathetic character who develops a friendship with Diana, chances are that Lord will ultimately be the big bad of the sequel. With his savvy mindset and infinite greed, it's possible that he uses Minerva to get what his wants. Perhaps he might even take advantage of what looks to be her infatuation of him as seen in one of the aforementioned images.

Jealousy over Lord is what could ultimately pit Minerva against Wonder Woman. Based on what's shown in the trailer, Diana appears to be genuinely fond of the archaeologist — enough for her to openly talk about Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) when asked about her personal experience with love. Minerva's line of questioning, on the other hand, hints that she's interested in the subject — this idea fits well with the theory that she becomes attracted to Lord later on in Wonder Woman 1984. Maybe after hearing the romantic, albeit tragic love story between Diana and Steve, she aspires to have the same type of romance with Lord, making her more susceptible to his manipulations.

Prior to Wonder Woman 1984's production, Jenkins already teased that the sequel will once again be another love story. That is primarily referring to Diana and Steve who reunite following their devastating separation in Wonder Woman. However, it might also be applicable to Cheetah and Lord's relationship in the sequel. Assuming that Minerva's affection is unreciprocated and Lord is simply using her for his nefarious plans, their story will be an interesting juxtaposition to Diana and Steve's ideal romance. This also means that while Cheetah is the face of evil in the movie, Lord is ultimately the story's big bad.

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