'Wonder Woman' has been one of the biggest cinematic successes of the year, so it's no surprise that a sequel, 'Wonder Woman 2', was confirmed so soon after the release of the first film. However, given recent news, the sequel might not be happening at all. Why, you ask? It's all down to Brett Ratner. RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Ratner's company, helped finance 'Wonder Woman', but the owner has since been swept up in the barrage of accusations of sexual harassment in Hollywood, following the denouncing of Harvey Weinstein.
Warner Bros. have already announced that they've cut ties with the Ratner, but for DC superhero Gal Gadot, that's not enough. According to Page Six, Gadot has decided that she wants nothing to do with any project involving Ratner, nor does she want the latter to make any more financial gains. "Brett made a lot of money from the success of 'Wonder Woman,' thanks to his company having helped finance the first movie. Now Gadot is saying she won't sign for the sequel unless Warner Bros. buys Brett out [of his financing deal] and gets rid of him".
On 13th October in an Instagram post, the actress made it very clear where she stood with regard to cleansing Hollywood of its sexual predators. "Bullying and Sexual Harassment is unacceptable! I stand by all the courageous women confronting their fears and speaking out. Together we stand. We are all united in this time of change".
Gadot has since stood by her words and according to a spokesperson for Warner Bros. "She's tough and stands by her principles. She also knows the best way to hit people like Brett Ratner is in the wallet. She also knows that Warner Bros. has to side with her on this issue as it develops. They can't have a movie rooted in women's empowerment being part-financed by a man accused of sexual misconduct against women".
Representatives for both Gadot and Retner have remained quiet, whilst Warner Bros. only replied with a "false".
The accusations
Six actresses have come forward accusing Ratner of sexual abuse, including Olivia Munn and Natasha Henstridge. One of the most vocal, has been 'Juno' actress Ellen Page, who has written a whole post about the issue on her Facebook page. In the post, Page mentions how on the set for 'X-Men 3: The Last Stand', the director forced her to come out. Page was 18 at the time, when Ratner turned to an older woman, whilst pointing at Page, and said, "You should fuck her to make her realize she's gay."
Upon explaining the consequences of that incident, Page did not hold back, "I felt violated when this happened. I looked down at my feet, didn't say a word and watched as no one else did either. This man, who had cast me in the film, started our months of filming at a work event with this horrific, unchallenged plea. He 'outed' me with no regard for my well-being, an act we all recognize as homophobic. I proceeded to watch him on set say degrading things to women. I remember a woman walking by the monitor as he made a comment about her 'flappy pussy'."
Anna Paquin ('True Blood') has confirmed the 'X-Men' incident on Twitter, claiming she was there when Ratner made the comment. The good thing is, following the Weinstein scandal, more and more women in the industry are coming together to make sure these acts no longer go un-punished.
