Warning: The following feature contains SPOILERS for Wonder Woman 1984.
Diana's wish to bring Steve Trevor back to life in Wonder Woman 1984 was said to have taken away her powers, but it's possible the dark influence of the Dreamstone had a far deeper effect on the Amazon princess. It seems likely the Dreamstone took something far more precious to Diana than her superpowers, stealing the essence of who she was: a paragon of truth.
One of the chief complaints many Wonder Woman fans had regarding the story of Wonder Woman 1984 was that Diana seemed uncharacteristically selfish in the middle section of the movie. Diana cared nothing about the fact that Steve Trevor's soul was now inhabiting the body of another man and that his life had been subverted in order to make her wish come true. It was not until they discovered that the Dreamstone which granted Diana's wish was an artifact empowered by a trickster god and that it was gradually taking Diana's powers as payment for her wish that Diana found the strength to renounce it.
Diana's out of character behavior makes a great deal more sense within the context of the Dreamstone corrupting both the body and the soul of those who used it. This explanation would fit in perfectly with how the Dreamstone functioned in regards to its effects on Dr. Barbara Minerva and Maxwell Lord. It's also possible that Diana's power loss was tied to the Dreamstone stealing her divine essence, simultaneously weakening her powers and her spiritual resolve to do the right thing.
How The Dreamstone Worked For Maxwell Lord
The power of the Dreamstone lay at the heart of Wonder Woman 1984's plot. The mysterious crystal granted the deepest wish of anyone who held it, but exacted an ironic price for doing so. This is because the Dreamstone was powered by Dechalafrea Ero, an ancient trickster god, also known as the Duke of Deception, who drew power from treachery and corruption.
Maxwell Lord changed the physical nature of the Dreamstone with his wish to become the magical wish-granting artefact. Lord gained the power to grant the deepest wishes of other people, in exchange for whatever price he demanded. In return, the power of the Dreamstone exacted a heavy physical toll on Lord's body, draining his health with every wish he helped bring about.
At the same time, the Dreamstone fueled Maxwell Lord's greed for its own evil purposes. The granting of wishes became addictive and Lord began seeking out more and more petitioners, like an addict in need of a fix, with little concern for the obvious destruction and devastation this caused. Lord only renounced his original wish after Wonder Woman used her Lasso of Truth to connect with him, which cut through the Dreamstone's corrupting influence to remind him of his original motivation: to be a better parent and provider for his son, Alistair. After realizing his son's safety was in danger because of his actions, Lord immediately renounced his wish and desperately sought out Alistair, no longer being under the Dreamstone's (and by extension, the Duke of Deception's) control.
Barbara Shows The Dreamstone's Changes Aren't Just Physical
The Dreamstone has a similar corrupting effect on Dr. Barbara Minerva, who accidentally tapped the Dreamstone's power with a silent wish to be just like her confident co-worker Diana Prince. This wish had its intended effect, but also replicated Diana's superpowers, making Barbara far stronger than she knew at the cost of the warmth and joy that defined her personality. The transformation grew even more extreme when Barbara offered herself to Maxwell Lord as an enforcer and he used the power of the Dreamstone to transform her into the Cheetah, removing even more of the woman who had been Barbara Minerva in the process.
Diana Acts Unlike Herself Following Her Wish
Many critics of Wonder Woman 1984 have cited Diana's acting out of character as a major weakness of the film's script. Their contention is that Diana's core philosophy is built around the protection of the innocent and respecting truth as absolute. Such critics had difficulty accepting that Wonder Woman might have a moment of weakness where she allowed herself to be selfish and refused to consider renouncing her wish to bring Steve Trevor back to life because she wanted to be allowed "just one thing" in exchange for protecting the world. It has also been pointed out that Diana's having sex with Steve while he's in the body of another man who didn't consent to being possessed is an act of rape; a fact which Steve pointed out when he tried to convince Diana that what they had done was not fair to the unnamed man, whose life he was risking running into danger. Some have also said that it was out of character for Diana to steal a jet to allow Steve a chance to fly a modern aircraft, even if it also solved the problem of how they could get to Egypt to find Maxwell Lord.
Theory: Diana's Wish Corrupted Her And Stole Her Powers
Within the context of how the Dreamstone changed Maxwell Lord and Dr. Barbara Minerva, Diana's out of character behavior over the course of the film's second act suddenly makes sense. When Diana made her wish to be with Steve Trevor again, the Dreamstone didn't just make Steve a new body; it intentionally resurrected him in a way that should have bothered Diana, as an innocent man's life was being sacrificed for her happiness. The fact that it was Steve who was the first to realize this and voice objection was a clue to the audience that something was not right with Diana. It was also a subtle hint at the influence of the Duke of Deception, who no doubt delighted in the idea of corrupting an avatar of truth like Diana.
It's entirely possible, given who Diana is, that the loss of her powers was a side effect of the Dreamstone taking away a part of who she was rather than the actual payment. As a being of divine heritage, whether she is a daughter of Zeus or blessed by several Olympian gods, Diana's powers have always been tied to her personal sense of honor and moral fortitude. It's entirely possible she could lose those blessings if she were to act in a manner that violated her personal code or the code of the gods that empowered her. If that is the case, Diana's sudden loss of strength heading into the climax of Wonder Woman 1984 could be the result of the Duke of Deception claiming Diana's morality in exchange for her wish rather than her superpowers. In any case, it seems certain that Diana's uncharacteristic selfishness in the middle section of the movie is a result of the Dreamstone's influence.
