July is shaping up to be an exciting month for cinephiles, with two directors taking the spotlight: Christopher Nolan and Greta Gerwig. The latter has been making waves recently while promoting her Mattel adaptation, Barbie, which is set to go head-to-head at the box office with Nolan’s Oppenheimer. However, Gerwig isn’t stopping at dolls as she’s revealed her openness to directing a superhero film in the future if she finds the right concept.
Gerwig, who’s mostly known for her work in indie films, made the revelation to Rolling Stone, saying:
Yes, of course. It would have to be something I had a feeling for and a relationship to. A well-shot, well-executed action movie is just incredible. It’s a dance. I’ve never done anything like that. But even in a small way, working with the stunt coordinator who did fight choreography on Barbie, he was just fascinating. It was so fun to talk to him.
“I think probably every director has a fantasy baseball league in their head of what movies they want to make. There’s some movies I’d like to make that require a big canvas. At the same time, I’ve seen so many directors move between bigger movies and smaller movies: Chloé Zhao doing Nomadland and making Eternals. Or Steven Soderbergh, or even my weekend buddy Chris Nolan. He made the Dark Knight trilogy – and they’re wonderful – and then made The Prestige, which is not a tiny movie, but it is also not the same thing. I want to play in lots of different worlds. That’s the goal.
Picture this: Greta Gerwig, having collaborated with Margot Robbie in Barbie, taking on the reins of a Harley Quinn reboot in James Gunn’s revamped DC universe, with Margot reprising her role. If that thought has crossed your mind, we’re right there with you, nodding in agreement.
Gerwig kicked off her Hollywood career as an actress in films like Northern Comfort and the critically acclaimed Frances Ha before bursting onto the scene with the coming-of-age dramedy Lady Bird in 2018. Those who are familiar with Gerwig’s body of work understand her unique ability to craft characters who are on a journey of self-discovery, navigating the complexities of the real world.
So, who better to breathe new life into the lovable yet madcap Harley Quinn? With Gerwig’s keen eye for storytelling, we can only imagine the fresh perspectives and depths she would bring to this iconic supervillain.
Patty Jenkins, the trailblazing director behind Wonder Woman, achieved a historic milestone as the first woman to helm a superhero film. Wonder Woman’s tremendous success at the box office, grossing over $822 million worldwide, solidified its place as the highest-grossing film by a solo female director (though it was later surpassed by Jia Ling’s Hi, Mom in 2021).
If Barbie makes the box-office splash we all expect it to make, it will likely put Greta Gerwig’s name on the map, making a potential directorial debut in a superhero film an exciting prospect for fans of the genre. But before then, fans of Gerwig can look forward to her two upcoming Narnia films, which she will direct for Netflix.
