Gal Gadot is criticizing DC’s handling of its superhero talent from when the company transitioned away from its Zack Snyder-led era.
The actress told the Happy, Sad Confused podcast that the shift from the Snyder-verse to the current creative era — run by co-chairmen and CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran — was “not handled elegantly, to say the least.”
First, Gadot was asked if there was a moment where she was told by Gunn and Safran that she would no longer play Wonder Woman.
“No, they told me the opposite,” Gadot said. “They were like, ‘We’re going to develop it with you, the third one.’ But I saw the way everybody else was handled, right? And I, you know — the Henry situation was unfortunate. I was in the middle of that. The Henry situation was not handled elegantly, to say the least.”
Continued Gadot: “Same with [Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins] — it was not handled elegantly. I feel like we’re all adults and it’s all good. It’s not even about them. They are there and they’re there to do what they believe in, and it’s all good.”
Cavill was actually announced as officially returning as Superman just before Gunn and Safran took control of DC Studios. Cavill’s Superman appeared in a Black Adam post-credits scene and then took to social media to declare on Oct. 24, 2022, that he was “back as Superman” and later added there was “a bright future ahead” for the character.
Two months later, Gunn announced his new Superman movie would focus on an earlier period in the character’s life and not star Cavill. The actor then replied, “After being told by the studio to announce my return back in October, prior to their hire, this news isn’t the easiest.” Actor David Corenswet was eventually cast as Gunn’s new Man of Steel for the reboot Superman, which was released last year.
Gunn himself has acknowledged the situation was “really unfortunate,” saying, “The day our [DC] deal closed, all of a sudden, they were announcing that Henry was back. And I’m like, ‘What is going on?’ We know what the plan is. The plan was to come in and do ‘Superman.’ So it was really unfair to him and a total bummer.”
Gunn suggested there was a faction within the studio trying to “force” its own plan for the future of the franchise. Gunn said he and Safran then sat down with Cavill. “He was an absolute gentleman, a great guy about it. He said, ‘The only thing I ask is that I’m able to reveal it myself as opposed to it coming from you guys.’”
As for Wonder Woman, the role has not been officially announced as having been recast, but Adria Arjona has been cast in a mystery role in Gunn’s Superman sequel Man of Tomorrow and fans are speculating the character is Wonder Woman.
Jenkins has previously addressed reports that claimed she walked away from Wonder Woman 3 because she refused to take studio notes. “This is simply not true. I never walked away. I was open to considering anything asked of me. It was my understanding that there was nothing I could do to move anything forward.”
Also in Gadot’s interview, the actress reveals she did a four-hour screen test along with Tom Hiddleston for George Miller’s action classic Mad Max: Fury Road (though they lost the parts to Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy, respectively).
“I came to London, and I remember walking into this beautiful home in London, into this office, and we stayed there for four hours. I came with all layers because it was a winter, cold day in London, and I came out in a tank top. The work that we’ve done was so intensive, and how much we filmed … It was amazing. I felt good about the work that we did. And Hiddleston is such an incredible actor, by the way.”
Gadot is currently promoting her new Prime Video thriller The Runner, in which she plays a single mother whose son is kidnapped.
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