The 'Struggle' With Making Wonder Woman Sequel 1984, According To Patty Jenkins

Gal Gadot in Wonder Woman 1984

The DC Extended Universe has been on a roll over the past few years, but the franchise had a rocky road with its early entries. Patty Jenkins' 2017 hit Wonder Woman proved what the DCEU was capable of, and broke ground with women taking charge both in front and behind the camera. A sequel was green lit immediately, but a few delays have resulted in an extra long wait period for the fans. And now Jenkins has opened up about what challenged her the most when approaching Wonder Woman 1984.

Patty Jenkins has moved backward in time for both of her Wonder Woman movies, peeling back the layers of Diana Prince in the process. 1984 is jumping up decades after the events of the original movie, which should open up a variety of different storytelling possibilities. Jenkins recently did a Q&A on social media, peeling back the curtain on her process for the highly anticipated sequel. In the filmmaker's words,

Well, that's definitely exciting. It looks like Wonder Woman 1984 will raise the stakes in regards to Gal Gadot's character and her superpowers. This version of Diana Prince is fully formed, which made Patty Jenkins have to adjust the way she approached action, CGI, and practical effects.

Patty Jenkins shared these Wonder Woman 1984 thoughts over on her personal Twitter page. The comments themselves are sure to delight DC fans who are anxiously awaiting Diana Prince's return to the silver screen. It looks like the action sequences will be really elevated in the upcoming sequel, with Jenkins rethinking how she approached Wonder Woman's powers.

The limited trailers for Wonder Woman 1984 have definitely teased this change, and a unique way at bringing Diana's powers to life on the big screen. The character is no longer using her sword and shield, instead focusing more on the use of the lasso of truth, bracelets of submission, and her tiara. What's more, the trailers have also shown her using the lasso to swing on bolts of lightning, highlighting how Patty Jenkins used a different mixture of visual and practical effects work.

Marketing for Wonder Woman 1984 has gone on longer than anticipated, but DC has been careful to keep the sequel's secrets close to the chest. Much of the movie's contents are a complete mystery, including Kristen Wiig's final appearance as Cheetah. Fans are also curious to see exactly how Chris Pine's Steve Trevor was magically brought back decades after his death, and without aging a day.

Wonder Woman 1984 was pushed back a number of times throughout the years, despite the movie wrapping production back in 2018. The latest of these delays was due to global health concerns, with the sequel currently expected to his theaters this fall. We'll just have to wait and see if it ends up making its intended release date of it its ultimately pushed back again.

Wonder Woman 1984 is currently expected to hit theaters on October 2nd. In the meantime, check out our 2020 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.