We’re all going to have to wait a little longer to see what director Patty Jenkins has delivered to the world with her latest entry into the DC Comics film canon, Wonder Woman 1984. You can chalk that up to the film’s release date being officially pushed to August due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That wait is going to become even more unbearable, as one of the film’s stars, Connie Nielsen, is absolutely hyped about one part that’s always stuck out as a curiosity: Kristen Wiig’s performance as the woman who will become the evil Cheetah.
I had the honor of speaking with Connie Nielsen, ahead of the release of her new film Sea Fever; with the conversation naturally turning to one of her next roles after the debut of her most current sci-fi thriller: reprising Amazonian queen Hippolyta.
Connie Nielsen’s anticipation for Wonder Woman 1984 comes from quite a few sources, which yielded the following statement when I spoke with her over the phone:
Patty [Jenkins] is one of my absolute favorite directors, and I’m just so excited to see what she’s done with this vision. She is truly a visionary and she just has an incredible sense of measure when she goes and shoots. I also cannot wait to see Kristen Wiig. I am literally such a fan of hers, so I just can’t wait to see what she’s doing with the character.
So far, Wonder Woman 1984 has released one trailer that’s teased what’s to come for Gal Gadot’s Diana in the strange and interesting era that’s laid out in the film’s title. As far as Kristen Wiig’s Barbara Ann Minerva is concerned, the character, better known as the Wonder Woman baddie Cheetah, seems to be a friend to Gadot’s blockbuster superhero in the first look we’ve gotten.
This was even confirmed when we were shown the initial photos of her character, courtesy of Patty Jenkins’ social media posts hyping the film, which was then set for release on November 1, 2019. But as fate would have it, the film would be pushed back to a June 2020 frame, which would have fit with Wonder Woman’s debut in the same timeframe in 2017, before shifting to its new August 2020 date. All the while, slow drips and drabs of Kristen Wiig’s overall appearance would be leaked to create the feeding frenzy we’re faced with today.
What makes the wait for Kristen Wiig’s heel turn in Wonder Woman 1984 even more exciting is the fact that even Patty Jenkins herself sounds like a huge Wiig fan. Laying out a performance that’s on par with Gene Hackman in the Superman franchise, it’s hard for the common fan to sit and wait to see what sort of trouble Cheetah will drum up in the DC Comics world. So it must be even harder for Connie Nielsen to have to wait, as she was actually a part of the film’s production and has undoubtedly heard more details than even we are privy to.
Naturally, this could all change before Wonder Woman 1984’s new August 14 release date arrives, because as any wise studio savvy sage will tell you, you need to save something for the next trailer. But just as mysterious as Kristen Wiig’s new soon-to-be antagonist is, obviously, Connie Nielsen’s return to the role of Wonder Woman’s mother, and the queen of Themyscira, Hippolyta.
Last seen in Justice League, Connie Nielsen’s character was supposed to have more of a presence in the big DC Comics team-up flick; but unfortunately swaths of her appearance were left on the cutting room floor. So by time we catch up with Hippolyta again, we might have the unique opportunity to see Diana and her mother reconnect after her initial departure from her idyllic nation, but before they would do battle to protect the world from Steppenwolf and his quest for ultimate power. On the other hand, it's also possible Nielsen's scenes occur strictly through flashbacks, as it's already been shown that we'll see Diana as a kid again.
Fans won’t have to wait too long to see Connie Nielsen taking charge again at the movies, as her character in Sea Fever is a commanding presence that also has to lead in a time of crisis. As the resolute Freya, Nielsen has to protect the crew of her fishing boat from an encroaching evil of underwater origin. While the film didn’t offer the same stunt challenges that she engaged in as DC’s big screen Hippolyta, Connie Nielsen does get to help fight off a bioluminescent creature that tries to infect herself, and her crew, with a parasitic entity. So it’s not too far off from spearing winged demons while running up walls, but Sea Fever offers an experience that’s different enough from what we’ll probably see Nielsen doing in Wonder Woman 1984.
It’s unusual, since in the normal timeline of events, we’d have probably seen another trailer for Wonder Woman 1984 that shows even more of the excitement ahead, with glimpses of both Kristin Wiig and Connie Nielsen’s roles in the film to stoke the fandom fires even higher. For now though, we’ll have to wait and see if the film actually sticks to its August release date, but whenever Wonder Woman 1984 finally does unfurl on the silver screen, a fair share of fans will not only be waiting alongside Nielsen to see what Wiig’s mysterious character will get into, they’ll be waiting for a long overdue visit from Themysciran royalty as well.
You can see Connie Nielsen in Wonder Woman 1984, which is scheduled for theatrical release on August 14. However, she can next be spotted in the indie sci-fi thriller Sea Fever, which is available on VOD April 10, and will have a livestreamed premiere on Thursday, April 9, with Nielsen in attendance for a Q&A following the film.
