In late 2014, The Hollywood Reporter wrote that Jason Fuchs, known for Pan and Ice Age: Continental Drift, was set to write the Wonder Woman movie with then-director Michelle MacLaren. Since then, of course, a lot has changed; MacLaren left the project and was replaced by Patty Jenkins, and the critical response to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice spurred creative and internal changes on production of DC universe movies. Apparently, the screenwriters on Wonder Woman have changed drastically as well.
In an announcement for their Comic-Con lineup, Warner Bros. lists Allan Heinberg (Marvel’s Young Avengers and five issues of DC’s Wonder Woman) and DC Comics’ chief creative officer Geoff Johns as screenwriters, with story by Zack Snyder & Allan Heinberg (emphasis my own):
Wonder Woman hits movie theaters around the world next summer when Gal Gadot returns as the title character in the epic action adventure from director Patty Jenkins. Before she was Wonder Woman, she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained to be an unconquerable warrior. Raised on a sheltered island paradise, when an American pilot crashes on their shores and tells of a massive conflict raging in the outside world, Diana leaves her home, convinced she can stop the threat. Fighting alongside man in a war to end all wars, Diana will discover her full powers…and her true destiny.
Joining Gadot in the international cast are Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, David Thewlis, Danny Huston, Elena Anaya, Ewen Bremner and Saïd Taghmaoui. Jenkins directs the film from a screenplay by Allan Heinberg and Geoff Johns, story by Zack Snyder & Allan Heinberg, based on characters from DC Entertainment. Wonder Woman was created by William Moulton Marston. The film is produced by Charles Roven, Zack Snyder, Deborah Snyder and Richard Suckle, with Rebecca Roven, Stephen Jones, Wesley Coller and Geoff Johns serving as executive producers. Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with RatPac-Dune Entertainment, an Atlas Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual production, “Wonder Woman.” The film is scheduled for release on June 2, 2017, and will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.
Given that Johns was recently tasked with overseeing DC movies alongside Warner Bros. Executive VP Jon Berg, it makes sense to me that this press release shows he took a more hands-on approach to Wonder Woman. I’m also not too dismayed to see Fuchs’ script is apparently no longer being used; although his take on the story was supposedly the most compelling of the five treatments originally written for the film, I haven’t been impressed by his more recent work.
My one concern with this change is that, as Jill wrote when Fuchs was initially announced as screenwriter, it would have been incredible to see at least one woman working on the script. It may be possible that Jenkins had the same impact on the script MacLaren was at first projected to have, but she’s certainly not credited as one of the screenwriters in this release. The Wonder Woman film has far more women behind the scenes than most movies, but I still would have liked to see more ladies involved in the writing.
(via Collider)
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