5 Actors Who Could Play Wonder Woman In James Gunn's DC Universe

Of the things that worked and didn't work in James Gunn's "Superman," it's tough to find fault with the casting choices. Gunn has consistently proven his adeptness at finding the right actors to play legacy comic book characters. As of yet, Gunn hasn't revealed who will play Wonder Woman in the character's inevitable debut within his (mostly) rebooted DC Cinematic Universe — leaving the doors open for fans to speculate on who could best play Princess Diana of Themyscira.

Thus far, two actors are primarily associated with playing Wonder Woman on screen in live action. Lynda Carter played the character for three seasons in the 1970s "Wonder Woman" TV series, and Gal Gadot portrayed the character in two solo films and other movies across the DC Extended Universe. Technically, Cathy Lee Crosby first played the character on screen in a best-left-forgotten 1974 TV movie — but for all intents and purposes, Carter and Gadot are the only two that really matter and have set the precedent for future versions.

Who will take up the Lasso of Truth on screen next? We've got a few actors that we think would be perfect, particularly when bearing in mind Gunn's style and how he will likely approach the character and her universe. 

James Gunn's superhero movies are typically a mix of action and humor, imbuing a sense of old school adventure fun to a genre that can get a little too dark for its own good — an issue many took with the previous generation of DC movies. With that in mind, plucking a "Pirates of the Caribbean" cast member would ensure that said actor knows their way around a movie that balances high stakes action with lighter moments and snappy dialogue. Enter: Kaya Scodelario.

Scodelario is the female lead of "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales," admittedly not one of the higher ranked entries in that series but nonetheless provided the actor with the action comedy training she'd need for a James Gunn Wonder Woman movie. She also appeared in three installments of the "Maze Runner" series, demonstrating an adeptness for action franchises. 

And then there is her role as Claire Redfield in "Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City," which earned raves from fans and proved that Scodelario could bring an iconic action heroine to life. All that, plus the actor's long dark locks that make her look the part, combine to present a strong case that Scodelario could be Gunn's perfect Diana Prince. 

Obviously, existing experience in the action genre isn't a requirement to star in a superhero movie. We've seen numerous actors get cast as comic book characters who had never done anything even remotely physical on screen up to that point. James Gunn seems especially prone to casting actors in this category, so it wouldn't be surprising if his Wonder Woman was a total newcomer to action films — which makes Victoria Pedretti worth considering.

A fact about Pedretti that fans might not know is that she really wants to take on more fantasy roles, so she'd likely be down to play a super-powered demigoddess in a comic book movie. To be fair, she's had roles involving some level of action and physicality, most notably in both seasons of the "Haunting" anthology horror series. But she's yet to play an outright action hero, though neither had David Corenswet before becoming Gunn's new Superman. Ditto for Milly Alcock, his new Supergirl.

So it seems Gunn is continuing his long tradition of giving actors their action hero debuts. Why not do the same for Victoria Pedretti as the next Wonder Woman?

Of all the actors on this list, the one who has the least to prove as an action bona fide is Amber Midthunder. She earned raves as Comanche warrior protagonist Naru in "Prey," the well-received 2022 installment in the "Predator" franchise. The actor's experience in action comedies such as "Novocaine" further qualifies for starring in a James Gunn superhero movie. In addition, Midthunder already has some comic adaptation experience by way of her being one of the leads of "Legion," FX's short-lived series focused on Charles Xavier's son.

We don't yet know what lore Gunn is going to build his version of Wonder Woman around. He is typically pretty good at staying accurate to the characters while tweaking them just enough to make them his own. But if he sticks with having the character hail from Themyscira and be an Amazonian princess, an argument could be made that Wonder Woman shouldn't necessarily be portrayed by a Caucasian actor. This could make Midthunder a fitting candidate for Gunn's Wonder Woman, as Midthunder is Native American and a member of the Sioux tribe.

Another actor who could become a household name by playing Wonder Woman is Emma Mackey. Her first big role was on Netflix's "Sex Education," a popular series but not exactly a global phenomenon. Mackey's two starring movie roles thus far — playing the titular characters in both 2022's "Emily" and 2025's "Ella McCay" — also didn't exactly launch the actor into the mainstream.

None of this is meant to take a dig at Mackey. It's all to point out that she's poised for her close up, as she only sports about seven years worth of screen credits as of this writing. Wonder Woman could be the life-changing role she deserves. She's got the looks, she's got the charm, and she's got the chops to lead a superhero franchise. And as a fun little bit of trivia, Mackey has crossed paths on screen with previous Wonder Woman Gal Gadot in the 2022 remake of "Death on the Nile." 

Of course, this all could hinge on how successful Greta Gerwig's upcoming reboot of the "Narnia" franchise winds up being. Mackey is playing main character Jadis the White Witch in the first installment, and if it turns into a franchise, her schedule may not allow for another cinematic universe. 

For everyone else on this list, Wonder Woman would arguably be their big breakout role, at least in terms of major Hollywood stardom. This is obviously not the case for Margaret Qualley, who has been a household name for several years now with multiple prominent parts under her belt. But it's so easy to picture her playing Wonder Woman that we couldn't leave her out, even if placing her on a dream cast list for anything nowadays isn't all that original.

A potential impediment to Qualley playing Wonder Woman is that she is one of the surprisingly few major actors who have never starred in a movie franchise. That's not to say she is opposed to the notion, but she has thus far seemed to prefer doing completely different roles. Something more in line with Todd Phillips' "Joker" might be more enticing to Qualley than taking on a character she'll potentially end up playing for a bunch of movies across several years.

Still, Qualley seems to be up for any project that she finds interesting. Gunn might be able to convince her to come on board as Wonder Woman, so long as she has the freedom to do other things during her tenure.