It's fair to say that work as Wonder Woman was a cornerstone of the DCEU from the moment she made her first appearance as the superhero in . Since then, a further three outings in Zack Snyder's and in Patty Jenkins' excellent and the sequel confirmed Gadot's status as one of the DCEU's biggest hitters.
Update July 7, 2023: This article has been updated by Valerie Parker with even more roles Gal Gadot could fill in the upcoming DCU.
However, a third film has been confirmed to be after the 2022 leadership changes at DC Studios, which saw James Gunn and Peter Safran take over the DCU and develop a ten-year plan that would include a massive reboot of the franchise.
We'll start off with an obvious role. As one of Batman's most devious enemies (and, along with the Joker, the oldest since she first appeared in comic book form in 1940), the character of
While it's tempting to suggest that Michelle Pfeiffer's portrayal of the character in , other versions have teased out shades of meaning in a role that remains, like that of Batman, endlessly malleable.
Staying with Gotham City, if Poison Ivy should ever make it back into a movie, Gadot would be a shoo-in for the role. The character's recent appearances in the have been largely successful, with Nicole Kang's portrayal of the character garnering praise in particular. But for movie fans, the non-appearance of Poison Ivy
Another big-screen outing would also redress the character's previous appearance in film. In Joel Schumacher's infamous , which, though it turned a profit, was recognized at the time as the worst of the four 1990s films by a distance in spite of its stellar casting (George Clooney, Alicia Silverstone, Arnold Schwarzenegger), and has since been hailed as the
To be fair to Uma Thurman, who played the character, there was little to work with in the script, and Schumacher's directorial decisions resulted in a film that accentuated the toyetic possibilities of the characters and setting to no good purpose other than selling merchandise. It was a risible showing for a character that has been embraced by fans as one of the DCU's very best villains, and Gadot would doubtless bring a sense of gravitas to the character that was noticeably lacking in the 1997 film.
This choice might seem a little out of the left field, but there are compelling reasons why Gadot would be triumphant in the role of Mina Murray. fans know all about Mina Murray, who is one of the main characters in Bram Stoker's 1897 novel (she marries the novel's protagonist Jonathan Harker) and is frequently depicted in film and TV adaptations. But it is in Murray's guise as a member of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen that Gadot would really shine.
In this incarnation of the character, Mina is a chemist with vampiric powers after an encounter with Dracula. Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill's story was famously committed to celluloid back in 2003, when, in spite of an impressive cast including Sean Connery, Jason Flemyng, and Peta Wilson (
As it happens, a Hulu reboot was , though it's unclear what the status of this project is after the announcement of Gunn and Safran's takeover of DC Studios that summer. Should the project still be in development, it would likely have to be considered Elseworlds, as it was set to be produced by 20th Century Studios and Hulu, so is unlikely to fall under the DCU banner. Should the project continue, is it too much to ask that Gadot find her way into the cast as Mina? Wilson's work in the 2003 film was hamstrung by a somewhat underwritten part, and we continue to wait for the definitive portrayal.
Going beyond the well-known, it would also be enjoyable to see Gadot introduce a new character to the silver screen, and why not start with a villain in the Wonder Woman universe? Veronica Cale was meant to make her live-action television debut in the TV series that was developed by David E. Kelley for NBC and starred Adrianne Palicki as Diana, with Elizabeth Hurley set to portray Cale.
introduced in 2003 and was meant to be a 'Lex Luthor' type foe for Diana. Cale resents Diana's position in society and the fact that she is a symbol of a paragon of feminism to much of the world, both of which Cale does not believe she deserves. She also envies Diana's power and clearly wishes she could be Wonder Woman. A talented writer and director could play on the past and Gadot's replacement as Wonder Woman, intertwining the idea that the actor might resent her replacement as much as her character resents the woman she wishes she could be.
Another fun potential villain turn for Gadot could be in the guise of Roulette, aka Veronica Sinclair. This shrewd businesswoman likes to capture heroes and force them to fight each other in a type of gladiatorial arena for the amusement of other supervillains, who bet on the outcome. She even managed to capture the members of the Justice League in her very first encounter with the team and forced them to fight each other.
The character of Roulette has seen two iterations on the small screen but has never made a big screen appearance.
The character of Roulette may seem like a when compared to the likes of Lex Luthor or Steppenwolf, but her method of forcing characters to face off would be an interesting dynamic to throw into a future Justice League film.
Sticking with villains, another character Gadot might step into the footsteps of is Talia al Ghul, the daughter of infamous Batman villain Ra's al Ghul.
Talia al Ghul previously made her big screen debut in Christopher Nolan's celebrated trilogy in the final film, , played by Marion Cotillard, and Lexa Doig took on the challenge in the television series . However, neither story ever dipped its toes into the romantic relationship between Bruce and Talia that lead to the birth of Damian.
Should Gadot wish to take off the superhero suit and enter the realm of the superheroes as a femme fatale, one could look no further than one of Batman's paramours, Vicki Vale. A character very similar to Superman's counterpart, Lois Lane, Vicki was often reporting on Batman's activities and is written as constantly on the verge of uncovering Batman's true identity.
Vicki Vale made her live-action film debut in 1989's by Tim Burton, starring Michael Keaton, and was portrayed by Kim Basinger. Though the character has played a major role in comic books since her debut in Batman #49 in late 1948, she didn't survive to reemerge in the second Burton-era film, , and was replaced by Michelle Pfeiffer's iteration of Catwoman as the new love interest, with only a throwaway line informing the audience that Vicki was unable to reconcile the Bruce Wayne/Batman dual identity. Revisiting the character and giving her the chance to grow and shine as she has done in over a half century's worth of comic books could prove an exciting challenge for Gadot.
One of the characters highest on the list that people would like to see a live-action film interpretation of is Zatanna Zatara (usually known only as Zatanna). Though she's appeared in various animated features and series from to , as well as appearances in the final few seasons of , as played by Serinda Swan, the character has yet to make her big screen live-action debut. The sorceress and member of the Homo Magi (a sub-race of magic-wielding humans) could be a fun and exciting choice as a potential for Gadot.
Introducing magic to the live-action DCU would be a fun and exciting addition to the big-screen DC universe that most of the general audience has yet to see. Zatanna's ties in the comics range from membership in the Justice League to a former relationship and partnership with Constantine, which would lead to Zatanna bridging the gap between both the lighter and darker sides of the DCU.
It was previously announced that a live-action film centering on Zatanna was in the works at DC, with the Oscar-winning writer of , Emerald Fennell (who also directed the film), behind the adaptation. When was scrapped by Warner Bros for tax purposes, it was announced that
When James Gunn announced the first slate of projects in the new DCU that he and Co-CEO Peter Safran had settled on, one of the most surprising projects confirmed to be heading to the big screen was
. Like Batman and Superman, they wish to protect the world, only they want to do it at any cost. This relatively unknown team of heroes fits well into Gunn's existing superhero slate from both Marvel and DC. Before the first film, very few outside of comic book fandom had ever heard of the team, and Gunn was able to launch them into one of the beloved franchises in the MCU. When he took on , Gunn introduced members even the most hardcore comic fans had little knowledge of, alongside powerhouses like Harley Quinn, and managed to even spin off a successful series focused on
The most likely role Gadot could fill in this group of questionable heroes is that of The Engineer, aka Angela Spica. After replacing her blood with Nanotechnology, The Engineer became an overpowered character who literally has all of human knowledge within her, having absorbed the entire internet into her bloodstream. With her liquid metal body, The Engineer can shape-shift and form metal objects out of her body, as well as use radio-induced telepathy and technopathy.
As the old adage goes, if it ain't broke, why fix it? Gadot's portrayal of the Amazonian Princess has been an iconic and powerful presence across the DCEU, and there's really no good reason why the character needs a complete reboot at this time. With so many other characters needing to be reintroduced to audiences with their new shiny DCU faces, what would it hurt to keep one glowing example of the previous DC Comics universe?
Sony and Marvel have proven that in a big way with the appearance of former Spider-Men Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield in , and fans would undoubtedly love to see a return of Gadot's iteration of Diana Prince as one tie to the film world that existed before this new one. introduced the concept of Elseworlds to the DC film universe, and Gadot could be the tie that binds them. If J. Jonah Jameson can be played by J.K. Simmons in every iteration of the character, why can't Gadot be the same at DC with Wonder Woman?
was easily the best of the DCEU films and was one of the best origin story films of any comic book film produced so far.
