Whatever your perspective on the DC film universe as a whole, Patty Jenkins Wonder Woman was a massive hit by any metric. This, made Wonder Woman 1984 one of the most anticipated movies of the year, even before the movie saw delays following the theatrical shutdown. Now, the movie is finally almost here, as the Wonder Woman sequel will see a simultaneous release in theaters and on HBO Max on Christmas Day. And a Christmas release seemingly makes a lot of sense, as Gal Gadot says the movie contains an important message that she hopes her own children take to heart.
As we've seen in the trailers for Wonder Woman 1984, the new movie will contain some flashback sequences that show Diana growing up on the island of Themyscira. In one scene early in the film, ET reveals that we'll see young Diana receiving the wisdom of the Amazons. Gal Gadot explains that there's a particular message she hopes her own children take from the scene...
That there are no shortcuts and there are no easy ways and there's no free meals. You've got to work hard in order to enjoy the good results. With my kids, I want them to always enjoy the process and know that it's OK to fail and it's great to go ahead and try again. I want them to have the motivation and the hunger to pursue whatever it is that they want to pursue.
Without knowing exactly what takes place in this scene, it would seem that we'll see young Diana fail at whatever she's trying to do, and learn that, while it's ok to fail, it's also necessary to try again if you want to accomplish your goals. While Gal Gadot certainly wants her own kids to take an important lesson from this scene, that lesson is probably something that will be good for most of us to see.
And whether they watch in theaters or at home, there will probably be a lot of young people watching Wonder Woman 1984 who can learn the same lesson. Part of what made the original Wonder Woman so successful at the domestic box office was the way that audiences embraced the first major female superhero movie in years. That meant a lot of people taking their daughters to see the film. While Wonder Woman 1984 certainly won't see a box office like the first movie under the circumstances, it could end up being seen by more people and having just as big a cultural impact.
Of course, that assumes that Wonder Woman 1984 is enough of a reason for people to subscribe to HBO Max. Many are of the opinion that the decision to put the new Wonder Woman film, as well as the rest of Warner Bros. 2021 film slate, on the service was made to help boost subscriber numbers. Whether or not that was the point, it could very easily have that effect.
