Wonder Woman 1984 is finally hitting theaters and streaming, but already attention is turning to a potential third installment and who may direct it.
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Patty Jenkins has directed both Wonder Woman and Wonder Woman 1984, but it appears her involvement in a third is a done deal. In a lengthy interview with The New York Times, Jenkins shared thoughts on a number of topics, including specifically the move to HBO Max and her future with the Amazonian Princess.
Jenkins was asked when she learned of the plan to include HBO Max, and said, “Two or three weeks before we announced it. It was weird, because the whole year I was afraid of that, and everybody at the studio kept saying, “No way, we’ll never do that,” because you have to make so much money with this thing. So when they suggested it, I was shocked. We did not agree right away — it was a very, very long process, and I don’t know that they would have let us disagree based on what they’ve been doing now. But I was conveniently into it for this movie.”
And with this plan to release every Warner Bros. film to HBO Max in 2021, Jenkins was asked if the genie could be put back in the bottle, and she isn’t sure. “I would like to believe that it is temporary, but I’m not sure I do,” said Jenkins “But I’ll tell you, some studio’s going to go back to the traditional model and cause tremendous upheaval in the industry, because every great filmmaker is going to go work there. And the studios that make this radical change [of moving their theatrical releases to a streaming service], particularly without consulting the artists, will end up with a very empty slate of quality filmmakers working there.”
With Star Wars: Rogue Squadron on her schedule for a 2023 release, one would assume Wonder Woman 3 would be her next film, but it may not be yet. “We’ll see what happens,” said Jenkins. I really don’t know. I know that I’d love to do the third one if the circumstances were right and there was still a theatrical model possible. I don’t know that I would if there wasn’t.”
For now, we’ll just have to wait and see what the next few years bring for the film industry as a whole.
Wonder Woman 1984 will release in theaters and on HBO Max in the U.S. on Dec. 25. Select international locations saw the film released on Dec. 16.
