ROTTEN TOMATOES: Silver Still Struggles with "Wonder Woman"

Silver Still Struggles with "Wonder Woman"

by Fred Topel | March 27, 2007

With the departure of female empowerment guru Joss Whedon from the "Wonder Woman" film, producer Joel Silver is at a loss for how to bring the amazon heroine to the big screen. But he hasn't given up.

"I mean, we’re struggling with it, but we’ll fix it," Silver asserted. "We’ll solve it."

He would not specify where Whedon got stuck. "I don’t know, we've got to find a way; we just couldn’t, we just struggled with it, we couldn’t find a way into it."

The producer did speculate on the possible inclusion of Wonder Woman in a "Justice League" movie, and his general hope for DC characters to dominate the big screen like Marvel's have.

"For years now, Marvel’s just been kicking the DC Comics’ characters ass. They’ve been killing them. And look, I don’t know if that’s because the Marvel characters are more self deprecating and more they twist on the super hero character. But I mean, DC is the foundation of the super hero character. They’re where it came from. Watchmen is more in the Marvel direction, but I would hope that we can bring some of these DC characters. They’re doing the new Batman now, and I hope they can do another Superman, I hope we can figure out Wonder Woman, I hope they make Justice League. I hope we can do a lot of these characters, cause I think it’s good to get them out there, and I’d like to try to win that war."

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(1-19 of 19 posts) | Reply

Mikeal420 writes:
on Mar 27 2007 06:13 AM

Am I the only one who thinks Sarah Silverman looks like a perfect parody of Wonder-Woman

Considering the direction the Super-Hero movies have been going, I think a parody would be a better idea

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kenny356 writes:
on Mar 27 2007 07:52 AM

Mikeal I love the idea of the parody wonder woman. I don't think DC would go for it.

As for this justice league movie, I wonder if the are actually going to have christian Bale and brandon Routh playing as Batman and superman. Because I understand having different actors playing the same roles, but generally that I wouldn't expect to see one guy playing batman in JL, and then Bale playing him in Dark Knight.

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lrm8 writes:
on Mar 27 2007 09:40 AM

DC's shit is weak. they have no idea what they are doing.

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Thundaar writes:
on Mar 27 2007 10:13 AM

I don't think there is an audience for this movie. Maybe on TV. But I might be wrong.

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adml_shake writes:
on Mar 27 2007 01:27 PM

In reply to this comment (#859415)
Yeah I kind of agree, I could see this as more of a TV series. But if they wanna try it as a movie I'll go watch. Once.

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arpeggio191 writes:
on Mar 27 2007 01:47 PM

In reply to this comment (#859415)
i think given the right actress/writer, it could be pretty cool. Although i do think they should go with an unknown actress for the role.

As for the JLA movie, that idea should burn on the page. I just don't see it working ever. You'd have to make an entire new ensemble cast and with so many solo movies already out (batman, superman), the only main characters left are Wonderwoman and the Flash. It would be awkward to bring them all together. This is why the xmen franchise works so well... you have all the characters and it's always easier to do the spin offs (wolverine, young magneto movies) stemming from the whole. That sucks cause i'm bigger DC guy than Marvel. Personally I put sole blame on Joel Schumacher for his destroying of batman. Thank the lord that Chris Nolan rules.

Anyway... i'm ok with the wonder woman movie. If they can make Ironman, they can make Wonderwoman.

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GreenBastard writes:
on Mar 27 2007 02:50 PM

Yeah just what we need, Wonder Woman brought to us by the guys who made Epic Movie or My Superhero Ex-girlfreind!
Enough with the parodys!

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Horstradamus writes:
on Mar 27 2007 04:01 PM

[b]Dump the original shlock.[/b]
We need a dark Wonder woman. Screw the heritage of the comic. Bring me nasty, mind-blowing, turmoil with a side of vengeance. There's your movie.

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Mikeal420 writes:
on Mar 27 2007 05:13 PM

In reply to this comment (#859418)
By parody, I was thinking more along the lines of what "Galaxy Quest" did for the "Star Trek" series, not those crappy films you mentioned

The films you mentioned are more spoofs than parodies-- but lets not get into a debate on definitions

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dracus writes:
on Mar 27 2007 05:41 PM

I think they'd be better off trying out Wonder Woman in a Justice League movie first. If she works in a Justice League movie then give her a spinoff.

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lrm8 writes:
on Mar 27 2007 08:33 PM

arpeggio, Iron man is much more believable than a wonder woman movie. dude makes a suit of armor vs woman descended from zeus and princess of a race of amazon women sworn to protect the world from evil (and they want to make it in modern times no less).

I agree with Thundaar, there is no audience for this movie, and they will have a very hard time adapting it to modern times. they really should just give up on wonder woman, it is bound to flop. people have to realize that some heroes just arent made for the silver screen.

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narcissusbleh writes:
on Mar 28 2007 08:24 AM

Sarah Silverman would be awesome in a WW parody. I would definitely go see that.

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jacog writes:
on Mar 29 2007 06:02 AM

Hmmmm... I believe it could possibly work, but then you have to establish your target market first. Most of the previous female superhero adaptations seem to have been created by men for men... so you basically had these hollow shell sexy women trying to be superheroes. And quite frankly... most male authors are quite freakin' lame when it comes to writing interesting female characters.

You should tell the WW story for women... tell a mature story with an interesting heroine and stay away from lame gender stereotypes. Unfortunately, if you had to stay 100% true to the comic, you'd be in trouble, since it has tons of seriously goofy elements. But on the flipside, the character itself has changed so much since the original that it's easy to go and cherry-pick elements of the character that will not be silly.

Firstly, setting it in a modern time is a mistake. It'd be more interesting if she was in the 40s during WWII, and fulfilling the role of a spy, operating on her own agenda, but still aiding the British in Europe. And drop the stars & stripes motif - her costume could be purely contemporary... brown earthy tones, slightly above the knee length skirt (yes please give her a skirt to wear), practical boots (no heels), a shirt and perhaps a coat of some sort. One could stick to the 1987 version of the origin story and still have her own the flaggy suit, but she doesn't actually wear it. Like a war veteran doesn't go around wearing his Congressional Medal of Honour every day of his life.

The island she is from may also need a bit of a tone down... some of the basic elements of that culture can be maintained, but it might be best to drop all the weird bondage shit they get up to there, for example.

None of this would appeal to most peeps reading this... but then I imagine this would be more af an Ang Lee type production than a Michael Bay production. much as I hate to use a stupid term .. I believe for this to be credible... it has to be a total chick-flick. This would also certainly benefit from a highly produced and stylised format a-la 300 and Sky Captain... with a deeper story to back it up.

Also... casting her with an American actress would be bad... she's from a remote (lost) island and speaks like a bazillion languages, so I imagine she'd not have an American accent.

And absolutely make her somewhat darker. She comes here being no more than a fighter that doesn't see anything wrong with resorting to extremes to achieve what she considers justice. This can be slowly adjusted as part of her induction into this world.

And no I am not a fanboy... just went Googling a bit.

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Erick Peterson writes:
on Mar 29 2007 11:23 AM

In reply to this comment (#859424)
[b]A Wonderwoman by any other name.[/b]
Changing the costume would be a great step in fixing Wonder Woman. An Amazonian princess in American stars and stripes? Come now! However, doing so would create ill will among her tiny fan base. Changing her look would also change an essential part of the character. Think of the first Punisher film. If one were to improve the character by changing her attire, the next steps would be to get rid of her magic rope and invisible jet, which are equally stupid. That'd only be the beginning. (I don't see why she couldn't have an American accent though.) By the time all was said and done, the end product wouldn't look a thing like Wonder Woman.

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Matanuki writes:
on Mar 29 2007 01:04 PM

In reply to this comment (#859425)
You and Jacog voice some good ideas. But like you said, the end result wouldn't be Wonder Woman and so what would be the point? There has to be a middle ground in order for it to be pulled off. I agree with the line about the stars and stripes. Makes little sense. And plays too much into American egocentrism. Also, I don't think this film has to be a "chick flick" in order to work. Chick flick, first of all, is a derogatory term for labeling annoying little sap fests that parody feminine issues and alienate the male demographic. In other words, it ranks with its relative the "extreme guy flick" as just another gender specific name for a poorly written story. A well written Wonder Woman film will appeal to both guys and gals alike. For instance, Sigorney Weaver's Ridley was a powerhouse portrayal of feminine strength without the Alien franchise transforming into something exclusively for girls.
Male writers, who know what they're doing and don't think with their dicks while at it, are actually pretty capable of writing good female heroines. But I agree that there should definitely be some women on the writing team for this one. If for no other reason than to tone down the potential for superficialities to permeate the development of the story. Maybe it should be one man and one woman, a perfect balance, and a kind of homage to Wonder Woman's initial husband and wife conception. She was thought up by a man and a woman. Maybe her film should be written in the same fashion.

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Flim Springfield writes:
on Mar 29 2007 05:38 PM

They need a name actress who already has a good female fanbase: Anne Hathaway, hit the gym!

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jacog writes:
on Mar 30 2007 02:30 AM

Well, I think a lot of stuff should not change... and nothing in it should step outside the established lore in any drastic way. All that would change is the way the stuff is presented.

i.e. the whole island full of descendants of Greek gods thing and all the powers they possess... script sample using a character from WW circa 1941:

EXT. PARADISE ISLAND. NIGHT.

STEVE TREVOR
You believe you are descendants of Zeus?

DIANA
(smiles) You have your beliefs, we have ours.

... and that's it... it's how far we delve into that side of it... they have powers, they believe this is where it comes from, but we the audience are premitted to be as agnostic about it as we choose to ...

Look at this picture of WW from the 1960s...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:WonderWoman1970s.jpg
She's dressed in what looks like long sleeved silk jammies and gunning down an aircraft with a big automatic rifle. The character is not beyond a little variation.

Like I said... her cheesy costume could well be a holdover from life on that island, something that has some meaning, and she could even wear it there. Out in the real world though, she'd most likely be better off dressed in a somewhat more practical manner.

It would still be her. It's more than a costume and a lot of the cheese could stay, but presented in a less cheesy manner. She could still do the deflecting bullets with the wristbands thing, the lasso could stay, you could work in the martial arts training she had at some point in the comics... and she could fight the Nazis like in the original.

And I would cast someone out of her twenties already... a Monica Belucci type perhaps. No children. Superboy Returns... anyone?

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FauxReal writes:
on May 03 2007 10:29 PM

In reply to this comment (#859428)
Well she's in disguise as a Chinese person protecting some Chinese family from attack by a Japanese fighter plane. Notice the "Rising Sun" imagery like Japan used during WWII?

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AbecedariusRex writes:
on Jul 29 2007 11:23 PM

Most actresses are bred for looks. Few are bred for real action. I'm something with this blogger
http://www.fitsights.com/blog/2005/05/next-wonder-woman.html
in casting not from Hollywood but from the fitness industry. Carol Semple, perhaps.
http://female.bodybuildbid.com/fitnessolympia/imgs/semple/semple5.jpg

As for the costume, what do women normally wear when they rock climb, box, lift weights, go running or swimming; certainly not red, blue and gold bikinis with high heeled boots!

(Reply to this)

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