Since being cast as Wonder Woman in Zack Snyder's upcoming Man of Steel sequel, actress Gal Gadot has been at the center of quite a bit on controversy. Because the Amazonian superhero has forever been drawn as a statuesque, strong woman, many comic book fans have complained that Gadot is too small for the part, both in musculature and height (she is 5'9" while her co-stars Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck are 6'1" and 6'3", respectively). Since the casting was announced earlier this month there has been no official word from the actress about the controversy, but now that silence has been broken thanks to a recent episode of the Israeli television series Good Evening With Gai Pines.
While the interview was conducted in Hebrew, Gadot's native tongue, a reader from Batman-News has translated and transcribed what the actress had to say about some of the criticism that her Wonder Woman casting has received. The subject was first tackled in the interview when Gadot was asked about being too skinny and the comic book character's large bust. Describing herself as "the Wonder Woman of the new world," she noted that bigger breasts can now be purchased for "9,000 shekels" and that doesn't really matter that much. She then followed that bit up with a bit of history:
"Wonder Woman is amazonian, and historically accurate amazonian women actually had only one breast. So, if I’d really go 'by the book'…it’d be problematic."
While the actress' chest doesn't seem like something the production is really focusing on, Gadot is now starting to do work to make herself a bit more physically fit the character in other areas. With cameras scheduled to start rolling in the first half of next year, the actress is beginning her new diet and exercise routine to get her in shape. Said the star,
"It’s the physical preparations that I’m starting now. A very serious training regimen – Kung Fu, kickboxing, swords, jujutsu, Brazilian…1,000 and 1 things…I’ll gain body mass."
What still remains a mystery is exactly how much of the film will actually include Wonder Woman. As was announced this past summer at San Diego Comic-Con, the Man of Steel sequel is set to be the first live-action movie to feature both Superman and Batman, and introducing Wonder Woman's entire back story into the mix could end up making the whole movie a bit structurally messy. Then again, Gadot may only play a cameo-level role, and right now is actually getting ready for the inevitable Justice League film. Hopefully we'll know more as we get closer to the start of production.
In addition to having Gadot as Wonder Woman, Cavill as Superman and Affleck as Batman, the untitled Batman vs. Superman film will also see the return of Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Diane Lane as Martha Kent and Lawrence Fishburne as Perry White. Chris Terrio, who won an Academy Award for his Argo script, is currently doing a rewrite on the script initially penned by David Goyer.
