A third Wonder Woman movie was in development at Warner Bros. right up until James Gunn and Peter Safran took over as co-heads of the relaunched DC Studios, and the decision to scrap the project evidently came as quite a surprise to a number of people involved with the now defunct threequel and the previous WW films.
While speaking to Den of Geek about her return as Lucilla in Ridley Scott's Gladiator 2, Connie Nielsen - who played Queen Hippolyta in both Wonder Woman movies and Justice League - admitted to being baffled by the studio's call.
“I think it’s crazy. I mean, frankly, I don’t understand it,” Nielsen tells the site. “[Wonder Woman] made $800 million just in the movie theaters, and it has an enormous and passionate, passionate fan base. These are spectacular films, and there’s just no reason I can understand whatsoever for not investing in that. If I were a business person, I would say that’s money on the table. It’s right there. Plus every time we’ve done it, [it was] with budgets that were way smaller than any of the other DC budgets.”
While the first movie was indeed a huge hit, WW84 is seen as a far inferior film, and didn't come close to making what its predecessor did at the box office - though a day-and-date theatrical/streaming release couldn't have helped in that regard.
“It’s a pity,” Nielsen adds. “I really hope that they change their minds, and that they realize this is crazy. This is a billion dollars that is lying on the table. Not claiming those fans and making them happy is something I just don’t really understand at all.”
Jenkins was all set to return to helm the third instalment, and had reportedly completed her script. Things changed when (or before, depending on who you believe) Gunn and Safran came aboard, however, and the threequel was shelved.
According to one report, the initial plan was to move forward with the project under the DCU banner, but it was actually Jenkins who decided to walk away after "receiving notes on the treatment she submitted to the studio." It seems WB higher-ups weren't completely sold on her pitch, which was said to contain "character arc problems which rivalled that of Wonder Woman 1984."
More recently, star Gal Gadot claimed that Wonder Woman 3 was still happening without Jenkins.
"I had a meeting with (DC Studios CEOs) Peter Safran and James Gunn, and they both told me that they're going to develop a third Wonder Woman with me," the Heart of Stone star told USA Today. "They said, 'You're in the best hands, you've got nothing to worry about.' Time will tell."
Gunn didn't weigh in on Gadot's comments, but a trade report would later clarify that Wonder Woman 3 was not currently in the works, and there are no plans in place for Gadot to reprise the role in the DCU.
There are no current plans (as far as we know, at least) for any incarnation of Wonder Woman in the first chapter of the DCU slate, "Gods and Monsters," but a Max TV series titled Paradise Lost is in development that will focus on “a Game of Thrones-type story about Themyscira.”