The villainous Maxwell Lord could possess a Chaos Shard in Wonder Woman 1984, explaining the surreal twists in the plot of the upcoming DCEU movie. Warner Bros. has finally unveiled the first trailer for Wonder Woman 1984, which sees director Patty Jenkins reunited with star Gal Gadot. Stylistically, it's very different from the first film, and a lot of its plot twists are currently unexplained.
The Wonder Woman 1984 trailer suggests that Pedro Pascal's Maxwell Lord has somehow gained the ability to grant people their hearts' desires ("think about having everything you've always wanted," he instructs in a voice-over). For Diana of Themyscira, this means the return of Steve Trevor, the man she loved and lost decades ago. For Kristin Wiig's Barbara Minerva, it means granting her the power to be a match for Wonder Woman, and unfortunately setting her on a path of self-destruction. The question remains, however, how these two wishes are granted.
It's easy to miss, but one detail in the trailer may offer an important clue. There's a shot of Maxwell Lord holding a mysterious crystal, staring into it reverentially. Dialogue accompanying the shot appears to hint that this is the secret of Lord's power. Visually, this appears to correspond with a little-known object from DC Comics known as a Chaos Shard, which does indeed have the power to grant wishes.
In the comics, Batman and Superman stumbled upon an object known as the Chaos Crystal, a tremendously powerful object that could be used to destroy entire worlds. The origin of the Chaos Crystal is uncertain; some comics have suggested that it hails from the dark world of Apokolips, and was mined from the planet's core and forged into a crystal eons ago. Others have claimed that it was actually a relic from the Sphere of the Gods, cast down to Earth. Whatever the truth may be, the superheroes were forced to destroy the Chaos Crystal, shattering it across the Multiverse. So-called "Chaos Shards" were scattered across time and space, each possessing less power than the Chaos Crystal itself, but dangerous nonetheless.
A Chaos Shard is a formidable weapon, allowing its bearer absolute control of reality. They can stare into the Chaos Shard, and it will rewrite reality itself in order to grant them their heart's desire. Given Barbara Minerva is an archaeologist, it's entirely possible that her film version will discover the Chaos Shard, and that both she and Diana will gaze into its reflection — and receive a secret wish. However the Chaos Shard is found, though, the Wonder Woman 1984 trailer seems to confirm that it will end up in the hands of Maxwell Lord — driven by greed and avarice, he's a very dangerous man to wield this kind of power.
This theory neatly explains a lot of details in the Wonder Woman 1984 trailer. The White House action scenes could be the result of Maxwell Lord's wish, as he looks into the Chaos Shard and is granted his dream of almost unlimited power and influence. It's reasonable to assume the easiest way to end Lord's reign would be to break the Chaos Shard, which could potentially reverse everything it has done. If so, though, Wonder Woman will pay a hefty price for doing so: she will once again lose her beloved Steve Trevor.
