When reports surfaced Michelle MacLaren was leaving the upcoming Wonder Woman (2017) film, it seemed like a devastating blow for the franchise. MacLaren seemed like a perfect fit for the project. Her television résumé was impressive, as she directed some of the best episodes of heavy-hitting TV series Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead and Breaking Bad.
There was every reason to believe McLaren would take a character who’s long been stuck in development hell, and do Diana Prince justice. Sure it sucks it’s obviously not going to happen anymore, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to give up hope. Numerous big franchises have had directors attached, only to later see them leave the projects.
How awesome would it have been to see Guillermo Del Toro (Pacific Rim) direct The Hobbit? That was going to happen. Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan) directing The Wolverine? He was actually confirmed to helm the project before dropping out after being signed on for six months. Patty Jenkins (Monster) was supposed to become the first female director to sit behind the chair of a superhero franchise with Thor: The Dark World before she was replaced by Alan Taylor.
The common theme behind all of these what-ifs is the movies each turned out to be fine. Whether or not they would have been better with the previously attached director is impossible to know, but McLaren leaving Wonder Woman — while alarming — doesn’t mean the movie is going to be shit.
Is #WonderWoman Cursed for Movies and TV? http://t.co/kGz99on6E1 pic.twitter.com/AmmwSWr9Rj
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) April 15, 2015
It’s pretty clear the people behind the DC Cinematic Universe have a very specific vision of a movie that connects with what they’re trying to build. I’m speculating, but it’s possible McLaren wanted to make her own movie and was getting tired of trying to align it with what Zack Snyder and Co. are trying to make. There are rumours her vision might’ve alienated fandom.
It will be interesting to see who DC hires to replace her. Considering the lack of diversity among directors in both the Marvel and DC universes, it’s almost a sure bet they’re going to hire a female director to replace McLaren. Zap2It runs through a list of possible replacements, including Jenkins and Academy Award winner Kathryn Bigelow.
Considering there isn’t yet a script for the film, it’s impossible to totally gauge the future direction of Wonder Woman. While there’s a chance the next director attached to the project might not make as good of a film as McLaren, the opposite is also possible. It’s a glass half full/empty situation.
Now it’s not all bad news for McLaren. Reports have already connected her to Marvel’s upcoming Captain Marvel movie. There’s positive momentum for that film as Guardians of the Galaxy co-writer Nicole Perlman and writer of Pixar’s upcoming Inside Out, Meg LeFauve, are in negotiations to write the film.
If Marvel ends up signing all three, it would be quite the coup. McLaren is such a talented director that it would be foolish for Marvel to not consider her. Either way, she deserves the proper vehicle and it would be delightful to see her entering “Phase Three” with Marvel if Wonder Woman wasn’t going to work out.
Wonder Woman is due for release June 23, 2017, and stars Gal Gadot (Fast & Furious). Captain Marvel is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 2, 2018, with casting announcements yet to be made.
[EDITOR’S NOTE: Warner Brothers moved fast on replacing MacLaren. Wednesday evening, The Hollywood Reporter‘s Borys Kit reported that Patty Jenkins has been hired as the new director of Wonder Woman.]
