“Wonder Woman” is officially the symbol of getting sh*t done (as if it wasn't before).
Directing “Wonder Woman” brought Patty Jenkins the buzz her career needed and deserved. After a number of projects that never saw the light of day (like “I Am Superman” with Ryan Gosling and a film about a female assassin called “Sweetheart”), Jenkins made history with “Wonder Woman.”
She became the first female to direct an American studio-made superhero movie, a movie that quickly became the highest-grossing film to be directed by a woman. It surpassed Sam Taylor-Johnson’s “Fifty Shades of Grey” with the story of Diana of Themyscira kicking *ss and leaving men wanting more -- empowerment!
“I’ve become more well-known than I ever thought I would,” Jenkins told Variety. “I didn’t think I would be getting this much attention.”
She’d hit a lull in making movies, and from 2003 when “Monster” came out (which landed leading lady Charlize Theron an Oscar) until 2017, Jenkins was doing television work and spending time at home with her son. “Wonder Woman” marked her re-entrance into movie magic, and like Diana said to the vendor who gave her her first ice cream cone, “It’s wonderful. You should be very proud.”
“I think the legacy of ‘Wonder Woman’ is a different kind of hero, one that hits the same marks but also really is about love and empowerment in a slightly different way,” she said.
Jenkins is being brought back on to captain the sequel to “Wonder Woman,” and her talents are coming at no small price -- after the studio tripled what she was compensated for the first film, Jenkins is set to be taking home $7-$9 million for “Wonder Woman 2.”
Jenkins’ success is an exciting look at what’s to come for women in Hollywood. Actresses like Claire Foy and Emmy Rossum have fought back in the past over salary disparities compared to their male costars, and we’re cheering on Jenkins’ own achievement the same way we rooted for Diana and Steve Trevor’s victories throughout the movie.
“She is definitely paving the way for so many other female directors,” said Gadot. “I think it was very important that she fought to get the best deal. You got to walk the walk and talk the talk.”
Gadot and Jenkins are walking, all right -- straight to the top.