Praise Themyscira, for new details about the Wonder Woman sequel are finally being released. On Wednesday, director Patty Jenkins and star Gal Gadot both released stills from the upcoming movie, which will be titled, drum roll . . . Wonder Woman 1984, because the film is set during the Cold War. Well get to that in a minute. But first, lets address the biggest reveal from these new stills: Steve Trevor is alive!
Jenkins shared a still of Chris Pine reprising his role as Trevor, with this caption: “Welcome to WONDER WOMAN 1984, Steve Trevor! #WW84.” Let it be known that Pine is absolutely working the hell out of that 1980s-inspired wardrobe, wearing an all black jumpsuit and a pair of worn-in Nike Cortez sneakers. Weve also got to give it up to the perfectly dressed extras around him, bringing a full 80s mall fantasy to life. Armie Hammer is going to take one look at this still and un-retire his jumpsuit phase.
But now for more pressing questions: how, exactly, is Steve Trevor alive? As you might recall, the first Wonder Woman introduced Trevor as an American spy who teams up with Diana during the first World War. They fall in love, but then Trevor rides off on a heroic suicide mission, sacrificing his life in order to prevent a deadly gas from being used in the war. Considering how popular his character was, Warner Bros. brass probably decided Trevor is too handsome and pure to leave behind for the sequel—implausible though his survival may be.
There are numerous ways Steve could be brought back for the sequel, per the limitless rules of the comic book word. Trevor could return as an alternate version of himself—maybe from another dimension?—or maybe he was saved from his original fate through time travel, as ComicBook.com surmises. And as The Hollywood Reporter notes, there are already inconsistencies with Trevors timeline in the Wonder Woman comics, due to sporadic relaunches and reboots of the franchise—so there are a plenty of possible storylines for Jenkins to borrow for the sequel.
Gadots Wonder Woman 1984 reveal, meanwhile, was a bit on the simpler side: just a still of Diana Prince standing in front of an ominous amount of TV screens.
Her outfit—what we can see of it, anyway–appears much less retro than Trevors, which is probably for the best. Do we want to see Diana Prince in massive shoulder pads? Maybe; maybe not.
Regardless, the vibe of the still is very Big Brother—yet another reminder of the timeliness of George Orwells dystopian classic 1984. (It can be no coincidence that the sequel is set in that very year.) It was reported last year that the film would be set during the Cold War, with Wonder Woman going up against the Soviet Union. So weve got villainous Russians, corrupt governments, and the whole 1984 aesthetic to look forward to—nothing particularly timely about that, nope, not at all. Thankfully, some of the films potentially maddening relevance will hopefully be offset by Kristen Wiig playing the villainous Cheetah, a casting decision that is both hilarious and deeply perfect. Wonder Woman 1984 is set to hit theaters on Nov. 1, 2019.
Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Full ScreenPhotos:The Must-See Looks from the 2018 Tony Awards Red CarpetYohana DestaYohana Desta is a Hollywood writer for VanityFair.com.
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