Make sure to check out DC FanDome's WW84 Panel this weekend for a new trailer drop!
It's been almost two years exactly to the date (August 14th, 2018 to be exact) since I visited the UK set of WONDER WOMAN 1984, which makes for a hell of a recall by any measure. Considering how much things have changed in the film industry, let alone the world, since that time, it's amazing I remember anything at all. But, alas, I took diligent notes and even some on-set sketches from my time there and have plenty to share from my time in the Wonder Woman trenches. As with most set visits, much that was held back during the visit has already been revealed via trailers, images, leaks, etc., so some of the info may be a little redundant, but there's definitely a lot of nuggets in here of note. If you're looking to remain in the dark, well, you probably wouldn't be reading this anyway. However, it's worth giving ye olde spoiler warning for those that somehow wandered into the wrong place.
What follows is a collection of interesting snippets gathered from my notes on set, interviews and general observations while there. I've also included some sketches I made on set, which were based on concept designs and costumes seen on set. If you're looking to get a big, broad swoop of info on the film, you're in the right place. If you want more in-depth thoughts from Patty Jenkins, Gal Gadot, Chris Pine and producer Charles Roven, check out those links as well (which will be provided below).
EVERYTHING WE LEARNED FROM WONDER WOMAN 1984:
1) When we find Diana in the 80s she's happy with her life, but reluctant to get into relationships, as she still carries a torch for Steve Trevor and is lonely as a result
2) Steve Trevor is more "transfixed by wonderment" of the 80s era in this film, rather than the war-torn realist of the first film
3) Diana and Steve are more "mature" this time around and will emphasize not knowing what you have until it's gone.
4) Gal Gadot, Chris Pine and Patty Jenkins discussed ideas for a Wonder Woman sequel while making the first film and discussed ideas for a third while making Wonder Woman 1984.
5) Chris Pine says that Patty Jenkins is the best "pitcher of ideas" that he's ever come across in the history of pitching.
6) Chris Pine says that Steve Trevor's return is "romantic and old-fashioned"
7) Gal Gadot says that Cheetah is her favorite DC Villain
8) Gal Gadot says that working with Kristen Wiig as Cheetah was an amazing experience and that Wiig's take on the character is "interesting" and "charming" and that she's a villain you will love.
9) In the beginning of the film, Diana and Barbara Minerva/Cheetah (Kristen Wiig) will be close friends who both share a similar loneliness and bond over it as a result.
10) Chris Pine says that in the first film, Diana saw the world as very black and white, but now finds herself fighting against the abstract concept of greed, which she may or may not want or need to defeat.
11) Gal Gadot says that Diana doesn't go about trying to educate humanity to be good, but to inspire them to do so with her own deeds and actions.
12) Diana works in the Cultural Anthropology wing at the Museum of Natural History, still very interested in antiquities and living a rather "monkish" life.
13) Barbara Minerva is described as a Gemologist who is socially awkward and wants more for her life, eventually falling victim to Maxwell Lord's scheme, which begins to change her from a sweet-natured person to the more villainous character of Cheetah.
14) One reason Patty Jenkins wanted the film to be set in 1984 is that she had JUST become Wonder Woman in the first film and she wanted another more solo adventure. Putting her in a sequel that takes place after Justice League would force her to adress the other heroes and presumably take away from the solo aspect.
15) Another reason Patty Jenkins wanted the film to be set in 1984 was because it allowed her to use the metaphor of another time to detach it from everybody getting particular about the details, just as they did in the first film.
16) Patty Jenkins grew up watching Wonder Woman in the 70s and 80s and loves that she now gets to do her version of that with the film.
17) The Cold War of the time period will tie into Wonder Woman 1984 in a big way
18) Patty Jenkins says the choice of putting Cheetah in the film as the main villain was to honor what fans of Wonder Woman wanted to see
19) The origin of Cheetah, according to Patty Jenkins, evolved with the main storyline and is a reflection of the core of the character, rather than pulling from any one comic-specific storyline.
20) In terms of how Cheetah is portrayed, given that the first film feels like a more grounded approach, Patty Jenkins says that there is definitely "magical stuff going on" in the movie and that it will be teased and graduated throughout the film.
21) According to Patty Jenkins, Max Lord "symbolizes both politics and Wall Street and corporations" and is very much "the epitome of mankind at their greatest success in business of that era [the 80s]".
22) According to producer Charles Roven, Max Lord's company, Black Gold, is synonymous with oil and his interest is in getting people from all walks of life to invest to become rich, although he struggles with how to deliver on that promise, even though he feels he's found a way.
23) Roven says that the choice to put Wonder Woman in the year 1984 was so that they weren't beholden to the events of Justice League, but wanted to pick up where they left off in the first film, just not the day after. "We wanted to pick up a character who had lived life here in our world for a period of time and who was a bit seasoned and also had dealt with not just the loss of Steve Trevor, but also the loss of her other friends and companions over a period of time."
24) Dealing with her emotional desires vs. doing what's right is the central conflict for Diana in this film.
25) Patty Jenkins says that Wonder Woman's Golden Armor Costume is "super complicated" and felt that it would be "super exciting" to have a new costume for Diana to wear, especially one that Jenkins has always loved.
26) The Golden Armor suit was completely built practically with fully-articulated wings and will be worn at different times, although CGI will be used to enhance fight sequences.
27) The use of The Golden Armor is in response to the threat of Cheetah, because she can "get you on all of your limbs" and is developed early on in the storyline.
28) According to costume designer Lindy Hemming, the wings of Wonder Woman's golden armor will act as a shield of sorts to protect her from Cheetah, who proves to be a formidable challenge to Diana in their first big encounter, necessitating better armor.
29) Wonder Woman will not use her trademark shield and sword for this film, the first time being absent since her debut in BATMAN V SUPERMAN (unless there's a surpise they didn't let us in on, of course).
30) Patty Jenkins wanted to have some humor in the film and hiring Kristen Wiig to play Barbara Minerva was part of that, as she starts off as an envious friend to Diana who very much wants to be like her and later transforms into a villain. Jenkins says that such a character would have to be a "great, fun, charming, interesting character."
31) Cheetah will transform gradually in the film, starting off as a shy, quiet demure type, then evolve into a more "punky" and sexy look, complete with a cheetah print leather jacket with studs and a python skirt. Her final form comes later and is described as akin to Darryl Hannah's "Pris" in BLADE RUNNER by costume designer Lindy Hemming.
32) The brunt of the story for Wonder Woman 1984 came to Patty Jenkins midway through shooting the first film
33) Patty Jenkins says the theme of the movie is "excess and want" and reverberates across each character's storyline
34) There will be a flashback sequence to Themyscira featuring the Amazon's "Olympic Games" event, where young Diana will be seen again, as well as Connie Nielsen's Hippolyta and Robin Wright's Antiope.
35) The Amazon Games are described by Production Designer Aline Bonetto as a cross between The Olympics and American Ninja Warrior.
36) The production hired Cirque de Solei to help with the Amazon Olympics sequences, which will feature massive practical sets that show off sporting events befitting of the Amazon race and something we've never seen before.
37) The Amazon games will culminate in an all-star competition, featuring the best atheletes of the event.
38) Lilly Aspel (who played Diana in the first film at age 8) will once again play young Diana, competing as a 10 year old in the games and doing almost all of her own stunts for the sequence.
39) Just as she did with the first film, Patty Jenkins has already concocted an idea for a third film, which would be "true to her theme" and "everything she stands for".
40) Patty Jenkins says that President Trump was one influence on the character of Maxwell Lord, but a bigger influence was Ponzi Scheme con artist, Bernie Madoff. Jenkins says the movie is not political and she does not have a political agenda in the film, but is rather calling back to the "kind of mavericks of business succes" of that era.
41) Patty Jenkins wouldn't say whether the famed Invisible Jet is in the film or not, but said that if she were to have it in the film it would have to be done in a whole new way that's "super cool" and not just Wonder Woman flying through the sky in an invisible jet.
42) Pedro Pascal, who plays Maxwell Lord, says he drew inspiration from Wall Street's Gordon Gecko, but says Lord isn't as slick as him. Pascal says he's not supposed to like his character, but that he does, especially the wardrobe. His accent will be of "new money" and not slick or polished.
43) Pedro Pascal says that audiences will be surprised at how character-driven the sequel is and feels he'll never be in another film like this ever again, as it's a one in a million experience.
44) Maxwell Lord will command a private army out of Cairo, Egypt, which will serve as one of three disclosed locations in the film, the other two being Washington D.C. and Themyscira.
45) For the sequence inside the shopping mall, the production dressed at total of 65 shops from that era, recreating toy stores, clothing stores, record stores and video stores, all from the 80s. The location was an actual mall that recently closed.
46) The production shot on location in Washington D.C. for several sequences, including The Smithsonian, as well as an extended action scene along Pennsylvania Avenue, which they tried to keep quiet, but found it impossible due to the fact that Gal Gadot was literally running down the street with flipped over, burning cars, dressed as Wonder Woman.
47) Diana's apartment is on the tenth floor inside The Watergate building and is very museum-like with artifacts and relics spread throughout. The space is on a curve with a large window overlooking the city, which acts as an "eagle's nest" for her to observe the city. The apartment was recreated o on a soundstage in London, where all the items from the Washington D.C. set were shipped over. There is also a "costume area" for when she needs to suit up.
48) There's an action sequence inside The White House (which we observed on set) featuring Diana taking out what appears to be Secret Service agents. The Oval Office was recreated in it's 1984 likeness on set, although with a rug from 1987.
49) A heavy use of glass and reflections will be featured in the film as a way of "seeing the truth" or, at least, a "version" of the truth.
50) There was no mention of Wonder Woman seeing/observing/interacting with other DCEU heroes in this film, so if any happen to show up it will be a surprise. No mention of a post-credits sequence either.
Below are some sketches from my notes on set. Nothing spoilerish (anymore) as it's all been revealed, but it gives you a peek at what we saw years ago before it was known publicly and what they show (and don't show) on set visits. Also, the first page details what we saw filmed that day, in case you were curious.
Overall, it was a solid visit and gave me the impression that all involved were really trying to make something special that lived up to the hype of the first film, but still acted as it's own thing, without having to rely on the events of the previous entry or the "present day" JUSTICE LEAGUE (which will likely go a whole other way with Zack Snyder's JUSTICE LEAGUE on the way).
WONDER WOMAN 1984 is slated to open in theaters on October 2nd, 2020
For MORE in-depth information on WONDER WOMAN 1984, check out the links below!
INTERVIEWS WITH GAL GADOT, CHRIS PINE and director PATTY JENKINS!
INTERVIEW WITH PRODUCER CHARLES ROVEN!