Wonder Woman 1984 (WW84) comes during the rise of women-centred superhero films like Captain Marvel and Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey. Unlike the other two movies, Diana has a key love interest, Steve, who plays a major role in this story. As opposed to Wonder Woman, Diana is no longer the naive ignorant superhero but a strong independent woman: with a caveat. She has made no meaningful connections with anyone and has been pining over her lost love Steve for over 70 years. Relatable. Empowering. Compelling. Yay, Girl Power.
Aside from the questionable character of Diana, the release of WW84 was met with many reviews and criticism surrounding problematic portrayals of consent and potential sexual assault, raising questions on men’s body autonomy.
Director Patty Jenkins based the movie on the light-hearted and campy 80s themes and tropes, which range from the setting to body-swapping. Her defence of the film, specifically on the issue of Steve in another man’s body (who is credited only as “Handsome Man”), was to repost a fan’s explanation: that body-swapping was part of the movie genre in the 80s and that once Diana’s wish was revoked, the sexual incident was eradicated from the fabric of reality.
There are plenty of problematic films in the 80s that should not be part of the current ethos, so it renders that argument moot. We know better in today’s day and age, and portrayals of dubious consent should be questioned and open for discussion. Additionally, wiping Handsome Man’s memory and “reversing the event” does not hold much weight as Diana, and most importantly, the audience, are aware of it. Moreover, it raises some eyebrows during the chance encounter at the end with Diana and Handsome Man. Diana slept with Steve in his body (taking away all of Handsome Man’s autonomy) and intruded into his personal space in his home, but she gets a potential do-over? No. Just no. If the roles were reversed and “Handsome Man” was “Beautiful Lady” or “Hot Girl,” there would be a lot more people up in arms, yelling at the screen and rallying against the pervasiveness of rape culture and consent. So why don’t we see it for this movie?
The crux of the issue is that Steve has taken over Handsome Man’s body, effectively killing him (via his consciousness), and does extremely dangerous stunts like hijacking a plane and getting into a car chase. There is inherent selfishness associated with taking over someone’s body and placing his life in danger. The most problematic scene that everyone has an issue with is that Diana slept with Steve in the Handsome Man’s body. The only person who brings up the issue of taking over someone’s body without consent is Steve, and it’s merely one paltry sentence. Then, it’s promptly forgotten and chucked aside.
Diana, a superhero who is supposedly a virtuous beacon of all things good, does what she wants with a body that cannot give consent. Then, after she renounces her wish, she leaves Handsome Man in what is essentially a warzone, with no memory of how he got there or what happened. If that isn’t an allegory of the aftermath of a rape story, then what is?
Finally, she meets the Handsome Man again in a snowy romantic Hallmark-esque setting and compliments his outfit. It is implied that there is no issue and that there is a happy ending with a potential beginning for the two. Diana isn’t weirded out that she slept with him (without his consent or awareness) and shows no guilt, while he has no memory of any time spent with her.
One may argue that Jenkins did not intend to imply questionable morals and simply wanted to create a feel-good family-friendly movie. The light-hearted tone does an injustice to the serious issues it attempts to deconstruct. Additionally, it does not make the audience’s response any less valid. Reading and decoding the movie requires the audience’s active participation and meaning-making processes and the author’s intent does not necessarily hold any special weight over the audience’s interpretation. Therefore, if it is possible for someone to walk away from WW84 and take home the message that men’s consent is secondary to a woman’s happiness or that women have to be entirely selfless to be considered a good person regardless of Jenkin’s good intentions.
The way we think about consent as a society affects everyone, and when we excuse or even celebrate WW84, what we’re really sanctioning is anyone’s ability to trespass on someone else’s bodily autonomy. Trauma, victimhood, and sexual abuse are not experienced by only one gender.