"Female comic book movies are never good."
Most people who say this are probably keeping
Elektra and
Catwoman in mind, being the only recent superheroine movies. Both of these movies had less than qualified writers/directors. Exhibit A,
Catwoman: Director - never really done anything before. Writer - only had written
Gossip and
Harriet the Spy. Exhibit B,
Elektra: Director - pretty much only X-Files. Writer - Zak Penn (hit and miss, remember
X-Men: The Last Stand?...) Diana deserves the best. She needs a top notch director (Kathryn Bigelow?) and a writer who really understands the character, like Joss Whedon (more on that later).
"Wonder Woman isn't as profitable as other superheroes." So Wonder Woman comics don't sell as well as Batman's and Superman's, yeah. This might be because they've already gotten so much attention and have developed a bigger fan base. Also most comic book collectors are male and probably find Diana harder to identify with. Her series is by no means an underperformer, though. She outsells
Green Arrow and is on par with
Superman. She is consistently one of DC's top selling titles. Her (awesome) animated film outsold others of its kind like
Superman/Batman: Apocalypse and
Green Lantern: First Flight. Oh, and she's also more popular than ever since DC's New 52 reboot thanks to a killer writing/artist team.
"Female action movies don't sell." In recent years, female action movies have become more popular than ever. The #3 movie last year was
The Hunger Games (behind
The Avengers and
The Dark Knight Rises)and the #5 movie was
Breaking Dawn Part 2. Keep in mind that both of these movies outsold
The Amazing Spider-Man. Look to movies like
Salt, the
Alien franchise, and the
Kill Bill movies to realize that female-led action movies CAN do well both critically and commercially.
"She's just not as interesting as the rest of the Justice League" This is one of the dumbest ones I've heard. Fist of all, Wonder Woman is one of the most iconic and influential characters in the DCU. She's part of the trinity! Second, she's one of the most multifaceted and could translate seamlessly into film. Her action-packed origin with a fish-out-of-water backdrop spell thrilling popcorn entertainment with heart. She has the benefit of everyone knowing OF her, but not WHO she is. Her story would be fresh and original, yet feature a familiar icon.
With some of the more idiotic "reasons" taken care of, let's talk about why a Wonder Woman movie needs to happen as soon as possible... She has one of the most interesting origin stories. Let me try to sum it up for you. Princess Diana, shaped from clay by Queen Hippolyta, leader of the Amazons, is forced to leave her home, an all-female island of warriors, because a man's plane crashes on the island and needs to be escorted back to the outside world. Meanwhile she must learn to defend a newfound world from the likes of someone maybe kind of threatening, like Ares or Hades. Nah, not interesting enough. Now in the New 52, Diana is the demigoddess daughter of Queen Hippolyta, leader of the Amazons, and Zeus, king of the Gods, and is running from the wrath of Hera, who is determined to kill all of Zeus's illegitimate children, all while protecting a strange new world filled with hate and greed and sexism. The story is a thought-provoking commentary on modern society disguised as an action-adventure.
She's badass. Need I say more? She's an incredibly skilled warrior with a strong moral compass. She's arguably the second most powerful being in the DCU and can hold her own against Superman. Time and time again, Diana has proven her badassery. It's her most consistent quality and would be loads of fun to watch on the big screen.
The industry is interested. Wonder Woman-centered media hasn't had much success lately, but people ARE trying. She's had two failed attempts at TV shows, one on NBC and one on The CW. The NBC pilot had tons of potential but ultimately lacked the spark that makes Diana compelling. Personally, I think she should be saved for the big screen with the budget and team she deserves. Whoever turned down Joss Whedon's script probably made a huge mistake. He's passionate about the character and (probably) delivered an awesome story.
She deserves a chance. There are 7 Superman movies and 10 Batman movies while Diana has none. She's the only superhero of her level that hasn't gotten the movie treatment and it pretty much comes down to her sex. Industries are cautious about pouring money into a female superhero movie, but their doubts aren't warranted. She deserves more than to be tested out in a Justice League movie. With Superman and Green Lantern already introduced, Batman soon to be, and Flash possibly having a movie on the way, it isn't fair to leave her with a few minutes of screen time in an ensemble cast superhero team movie. Let's not mirror the sexist acts Diana witnesses when she comes to our world for the fist time. What would Wonder Woman say to the blatant sexism standing in the way of an incredible
female superhero movie superhero movie?
Thanks for reading!