Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman was the first installment in the DCEU that wasn’t largely panned by critics, so naturally, expectations were high for the sequel. After facing several lengthy delays, it finally arrived in theaters and on HBO Max on Friday, and it would be fair to say that the reaction has been mixed.
The visuals have largely been praised, but fans have a number of issues with the rest of Wonder Woman 1984. At two and a half hours, Diana Prince’s second solo outing is often a slog, and that’s without mentioning the abundance of massive plot holes. There’s also been criticism aimed at the bizarre plot device used to bring back Chris Pine’s Steve Trevor, Pedro Pascal’s hammy performance as villain Maxwell Lord and Kirsten Wiig turning into an extra from Cats for the climactic third act showdown.
Wonder Woman 1984 currently holds a 63% score on Rotten Tomatoes with users rating it at a slightly higher 72%, but it’s also claimed the unwanted distinction of becoming the lowest-rated DCEU movie on IMDb, with a 5.7 placing it at the bottom of the pile beneath David Ayer’s maligned Suicide Squad.
Despite suffering from such a polarizing reception, though, Warner Bros. must have been happy enough with the result, having fast-tracked a third adventure into active development, and it’ll presumably be next on the agenda for Jenkins once she finishes Star Wars: Rogue Squadron, which is already dated for December 2023. Wonder Woman 1984 may not be hitting the critical or commercial heights of its predecessor, but the studio are clearly pleased with the movie, even if a lot of people seem to have some serious issues with the narrative it presents.