A couple of months ago, rumors that Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman was a mess began to spread. However, Diana Prince's first DC Extended Universe solo outing is the shared universe’s first critical success of this shared universe, and so much more. According to the latest polls, Wonder Woman is also the summer’s most anticipated flick (via Batman News), beating the likes of Spider-Man: Homecoming, Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, Transformers: The Last Knight, and quite a few others.
From any point of view, this is great news! In addition to having the potential to set the DC Extended Universe on the right track, Wonder Woman is also the first modern female-focused superhero movie. It’s also the second superhero movie directed by a woman (the first was Lexi Alexander's disappointing 2008 Punisher: War Zone).
Wonder Woman will open the door for more superheroine movies, but which comic book characters should be featured next?
Here’s what we think. Note that we’re skipping Captain Marvel and Batgirl, which are already set to happen in the next couple of years.
X-23
Let's start with the obvious choice. This year’s Logan introduced one of the most bad-ass superheroines we've ever seen on the big screen. And she’s just a kid! Laura Kinney, aka X-23, is Logan’s clone, and even more of a living weapon than Wolverine.
She might appear to be fragile, but she’s far from weak, even without her adamantium-coated skeleton. X-23, with her skills and her unchecked temper, is capable of obliterating all the enemies in her path. Given her backstory, she'd be an interesting character to develop, as Wolverine was.
James Mangold teased that her character would appear in future X-Men movies, and the producers said that she'll have a solo flick, but when? And when will the action take place?
Given 20th Century Fox’s recent success with R-rated superhero flicks, we can bet that an official announcement will be made anytime now.
She Hulk
Bruce Banner’s cousin Jennifer Walters became She-Hulk following a blood transfusion from him. Who in their right mind would ever do that? We have no idea, but maybe that's why they call ’em comic books. With the fan-base the Hulk has gathered since his appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we think She-Hulk would make an even bigger splash. Why?
We’ve seen two Hulk solo movies so far, but they didn't have quite the desired impact. This is due in part to the fact that Hulk (not Bruce Banner) isn't an overly relatable character.
Unlike her cousin, She-Hulk retains her intelligence when she comes out. So it’s much more likely that fans will love her in a solo outing.
Who knows? Maybe when Mark Ruffalo retires as the Hulk, She-Hulk will take his place!
She’s broken the fourth wall in the past, so this could be a Hulk movie like we've never seen before: not mopey, and actually funny!
Zatanna
Zatanna isn’t the most widely known superheroine on this list, but she’s one of the DC comic book universe’s most powerful practitioners of magic. Warner Bros. should take her into account as they mess around with the DCEU slate.
A stage magician as well as an actual magician, Zatanna casts spells by flipping words around and saying them backward. This in itself is a neat trick that could be awesome on the big screen. Teleportation, transmutation, the power to erase minds, finding coins behind children's ears…She can do it all.
But it isn't just her superpowers that make her an interesting character; it’s also her backstory as the daughter of powerful mages. A solo origin movie would be as amazing as one in which she’s already established as a superheroine.
Zatanna is expected to make her debut in Justice League Dark, which recently lost another director. If the DC Extended Universe will be as exhaustive as we believe, it should touch on its supernatural side. Zatanna is also the only magician Justice League turns to when in need, so she could be the character to expand the shared universe in that direction.
Squirrel Girl
Come on! This has to happen! Squirrel Girl would be a perfect fit for the Marvel Cinematic Universe! Furthermore, with her personality, Squirrel Girl's adventures would inject some humor.
Of course, this is the new version of Squirrel Girl; she’s no longer a mutant. And since we don't know what will happen between Marvel and Fox, we could add that her movie would be a breath of fresh air in the relatively dark X-Men Shared Universe.
Despite her lack of cosmic powers (so to speak), she is actually one of the most formidable superheroines out there. She’s even defeated the Mad Titan! Her solo movie should feature a less formidable antagonist so the audiences can become acquainted with her. Once that happens, she'll be a great addition to any MCU or the X-Men Shared Universe team.
Black Widow
Black Widow has been a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2010's Iron Man 2. Since then, her appearances in the Captain America movies have made her a fan favorite. But, despite all this, she hasn't received a solo flick.
Kevin Feige has said on a couple of occasions that Black Widow would have a solo movie. However, with Phase III drawing to an end, and a future MCU that will most likely focus on cosmic adventures, when will that fit in?
We believe that Black Widow's story should be rewritten as soon as the Infinity War ends. If the shared universe will indeed focus on cosmic adventures, she could be one of its few connections with Earth.
We’d like to see a Black Widow film that focuses on her past, specifically what made her turn against the Russians, defect to the US, and become an Avenger.
Hawkgirl
Along with Hawkman, Hawkgirl is one of the most tragic DC characters. They’re doomed to forever seek each other and fall in love. Then, in an infinite circle of reincarnation, that love signals the coming of death. This curse originated when they were both killed with a knife forged from the Nth metal. Plus, with each reincarnation, their killer also returns.
Hawkgirl has appeared in the CW's Arrowverse, but not as the Hawkgirl from the comics. We believe that a movie should focus on her powers and curse, including the Nth metal, which could play an important part in the DC Extended Universe.
In addition, the upcoming Wonder Woman movie might introduce the Thanagarians as Earth’s allies during Darkseid's first attempt to invade the planet. Time will tell"¦
Psylocke
More often than not, the narrow focus of the X-Men movies has completely wasted a number of mutants. Leaving aside Angel, who was underused on two separate occasions, Psylocke is probably the female mutant who most deserves a solo movie.
When X-Men: Apocalypse was announced, fans were delighted to hear that Psylocke would appear. However, she was reduced to serving as eye-candy, and wasn’t given an actual arc. Additionally, she was also the only Horseman we knew nothing about after the antagonist was defeated.
We hope that Fox has bigger plans for her than just that.
After all, her backstory is one of the best ever. It includes having her mind placed in the body of a Ninja, which leads to the development of a proficiency at sword fighting and using telekinesis.
We'd like to see a Psylocke movie set in Japan. Maybe this will work more effectively than The Wolverine.
Wasp
Although Ant-Man was a founding Avengers member, and Hank Pym created Ultron, Ant-Man didn’t appear in the MCU until Phase II. We can say the same about the original Wasp, who was also a founding member. She even gave the team its name.
Marvel shouldn’t forget that, with the exception of Captain America, she’s been the team’s leader on the greatest number of occasions.
In the MCU, the original Wasp was lost in the Quantum Realm. However, it’s rumored that she'll have a major role in Ant-Man and the Wasp, so this could be a starting point for her. And since time and space don't exist in the Quantum Realm, Marvel can cast any actress to portray Wasp in any future Marvel movie.
There are plenty of story opportunities here, and it would be a shame if it didn't happen, especially since she is also one of the smartest among the Avengers, a team in which the males have established themselves as geniuses.
Read More: The Smartest Superheroes
Power Girl
This is weird, right? Why would Warner Bros. want to introduce a character from a parallel Earth rather than Supergirl? Well, this could be a stroke of genius. Marvel waited a couple of phases to introduce the concept of a multiverse, but Warner Bros. could do it early. As far as we’re concerned, Power Girl would be a much better choice for a movie than Black Adam.
Power Girl is a more mature, aggressive version of Supergirl. However, her superhero identity is completely distinct from Superman’s. This mindset alone sets her up for her own movie.
We don't believe she'll get it, since Warner Bros. seems more interested in Deadshot solo movies, but we’re allowed to dream. Right?
Witchblade
Lastly, we’ll move away from DC and Marvel to talk about Witchblade, who’s the offspring of Darkness and Angelus. Her story begins on Earth, almost as soon as the planet was created. it’s become everyone’s story from prehistory to the post-apocalyptic future, and there have been plenty of female hosts.
There are a number of stories to tell, especially since some of the characters were actual historical figures or pop-culture icons (Lara Croft, Red Sonja).
Even more interestingly, Witchblade is just one of 13 remaining characters from the Top Cow Universe. So this could be just the beginning of a new shared universe.
Megan Fox was approached in 2008 to star in an adaptation to be set in the present day, but we dodged a bullet there, right? Nothing further has happened with the project, and it’s entered development hell. Maybe now is the right time to resurrect it.
