The Academy Award Winning Actress Who Turned Down A Role In Wonder Woman

Charlize Theron in Atomic Blonde

Although it was released nearly two months ago, discussion revolving around Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman has only continued to grow. The film is the DC Extended Universe's first bonafide critical darling, and the capsulated story has been praised for being able to function outside of the larger narrative of the shared universe. Jenkins managed to assemble a fantastic cast for Wonder Woman, although now it appears that she missed out on an Academy Award winner. Because Charlize Theron was reportedly offered a role, but was unable to join the project due to her own busy schedule.

This news comes to us from Charlize Theron's recent appearance on The Howard Stern Show (via Batman-News). When Stern accidentally thought she was in Wonder Woman, Theron revealed that director Patty Jenkins approached her for a role. She said,

No, I'm not in Wonder Woman. We're friends. I think the world of her. We have a mutual respect for each other. She did come to me, and at the time I was either working on something or I don't know. There was a reason I couldn't do it.

Well, this stinks. Charlize Theron would have been great in Wonder Woman, but considering the massive amount of projects she currently has on her plate, it makes sense that her schedule likely wouldn't allow her to join the superhero flick.

Now is the time where we begin to theorize about what role Patty Jenkins approached Charlize Theron about. Perhaps the most obvious choice would be the role of General Antiope, which was played by the incomparable Robin Wright in Wonder Woman. The two actresses have similar looks, and you could easily see Theron in battle gear, and kicking ass on the beach of Themyscira. With roles in Mad Max: Fury Road, The Fate of the Furious, and Atomic Blonde, Theron has clearly made a name for herself in the world of action flicks.

Then again, Antiope dies pretty early into the runtime of Wonder Woman, so its possible that Patty Jenkins would want to give her a role that would be a bit more present through the second and third acts of the film. In this case, I'd guess that Theron might have been approached to play the villainous Doctor Poison (played by Elena Anaya in the film). She made a top notch villain in The Fate of the Furious, so its definitely something that's in her wheelhouse.

Charlize Theron's collaboration with Patty Jenkins in Monster resulted in her Oscar win, so I wouldn't be surprised if the actress showed up in a possible sequel. In the meantime, you can still catch Wonder Woman in some theaters, and be sure to check out our 2017 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.