Spoilers for Wonder Woman 1984 below!
Wonder Woman 1984 is in theaters and on HBO Max right now, and the reviews have been…well, so-so. But the film is doing well enough that WB has already greenlit a sequel, with director Patty Jenkins and star Gal Gadot returning. That’s pretty much all we know about what could be coming up, but Jenkins did have a tantalizing tease of a possible return in her interview with Den of Geek.
The conclusion of Wonder Woman 1984 saw Diana defeating Maxwell Lord, forcing him to renounce his all-powerful wish, thus negating the wishes of the rest of the world that had caused so much chaos. Lord’s story is wrapped up pretty neatly. He comes to regret what he did and gives it up for the sake of his son.
However, the fate of Barbara Minerva aka Cheetah is left hanging in the air. She battles Diana, who is wearing the golden armor of legendary Amazonian warrior Asteria (played by Lynda Carter), but the battle ends somewhat up in the air. Diana clearly wins, but Minerva is last seen without having renounced her wish. She’s also minus her Cheetah look, which suggests she’s lost everything, but could still be holding on to a grudge.
Jenkins revealed that she purposefully left Minerva’s story open, in the chance that it could be revisited in Wonder Woman 3…
“I have my reasons for making it ambiguous, and I think it’s not clear what her point of view [is] on everything that just happened. I love that we wrap up Max Lord’s point of view, and that you see the culmination of that storyline, I think is so important. But the truth is there may or may not be more to come [for Barbara].”
Oh, I think there’s more to come for Cheetah. Not only do I think she’ll return in a third and possibly final Wonder Woman movie, but I think the character continues on in the DCEU.
It’s unlikely that we’ll see Chris Pine’s Steve Trevor in Wonder Woman 3, except maybe as a cameo in flashback. And Jenkins has previously spoken about it being set in the present, rather than a period piece, which makes perfect sense. It’s important to show what a character like her means in the here and now.
Considering the mid-credits scene reveals that Asteria is alive, well, and living in plain sight just like Diana does, we may see her return, as well. Perhaps…she helps Minerva get her powers back? Minerva’s initial wish was to be just like Diana, so it stands to reason that another Amazon could help her reclaim what has been lost.
