As Wonder Woman’s star continues to rise, it’s been announced that it’s now had more global success than any other live-action film helmed by a female director.
The new superhero film was directed by Patty Jenkins, who previously oversaw ‘Monster’ and episodes of ‘Arrested Development’, ‘Entourage’ and ‘The Killing’.
Recent figures show that it has taken almost $654 million (£512.4 million) worldwide, meaning in its fourth week of release it has now grossed more than any other female-helmed film.
Wonder Woman’ has toppled the record previously held by Phyllida Lloyd’s ‘Mamma Mia!’, which brought in $609.8 million (£478 million) and Sam Taylor-Johnson’s ‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’, now at number three on $571 million (£447.7 million).
However, these figures only count for live-action films, with ‘Kung Fu Panda 2’ (yes, ‘Kung Fu Panda 2’) currently the film with a sole female director to have pulled in the most money worldwide.
The success of ‘Wonder Woman’ makes it even more shocking that its leading star Gal Gadot earned such a small amount for her efforts, particularly in comparison with other leads in superhero films.
As the film bagged critical acclaim and huge box office sales earlier in the month, conversation was reignited about the $300,000 that Gal was paid for her performance, which was first revealed by Variety back in 2014.
For comparison, her ‘DC Extended Universe’ colleagues’ earnings are reportedly a lot higher, with Forbes claiming Henry Cavill made $14 million for ‘Man Of Steel’.
The numbers are coming under extra scrutiny thanks to ongoing conversations around the Hollywood pay gap.
A number of female stars have spoken out about being paid less than their male counterparts, including ‘American Hustle’ star Jennifer Lawrence.
The disparity between Jen’s earnings and those of her male co-stars was revealed in a Sony emails leak and the actress later wrote about the experience for Lena Dunham’s newsletter, Lenny.
