Welcome back to Friday Feature, IMAX fans. It’s an exciting time at the movies as Warner Bros.’ and DC Comics’ eagerly anticipated Wonder Woman launches today in IMAX theatres worldwide.
Wonder Woman — which marks the first live-action blockbuster released in IMAX to be directed by a woman, the incredibly talented Patty Jenkins — stars an amazing roster of supremely kick-ass women, led by Gal Gadot as the titular superhero.
The release of Wonder Woman — the first superhero studio tentpole to feature a female protagonist at its center — really is a watershed moment in Hollywood.
Here are some of our favorite, most inspiring wonder women (both fictional and IRL) from past IMAX films:
— Toni Myers: Kicking off our list is none other than the acclaimed filmmaker Toni Myers, who is a trailblazer not only for IMAX, but within the film industry at large. Myers has had a brilliant career that spans decades having directed some of the most successful IMAX documentaries, including Space Station 3D (2002), Hubble (2010) and last year’s A Beautiful Planet.
Myers commented on her career as a documentarian saying, “The whole idea of making A Beautiful Planet was [based on] the hope that I could inspire a new generation to appreciate their world through that lens, and if this film can inspire [young people] to go out and work toward a solution and work together and spread the word then that will make me extremely happy.” Read the full Q & A HERE.
— Jennifer Yuh Nelson: While Patty Jenkins marks the first woman to direct a live-action blockbuster in IMAX, Jennifer Yuh Nelson helped pave the way on the animation front having directed Kung Fu Panda 2 in 2011 and co-directed 2016’s Kung Fu Panda 3 with Alessando Carloni.
— Scarlett Johannson: One of the world’s most recognizable movie stars, Scarlett Johannson has had an incredible career in IMAX having been featured in eight IMAX releases, including both Captain America and Avengers films, Iron Man 2, Lucy, The Jungle Book and Ghost in the Shell. IMAX fans will see Johannson next year in Avengers: Infinity War.
— Emma Watson: Though she’s only 27, Emma Watson likewise has had an extensive career to date in IMAX starring in a remarkable ten IMAX releases, including all eight Harry Potter films (thanks largely to last year’s Harry Potter marathon in IMAX), Noah (2014) and this year’s blockbuster hit Beauty and the Beast. Fun fact: Scenes from this year’s indie film The Circle, starring Watson and Tom Hanks, were actually filmed at IMAX headquarters in Playa Vista.
— Jyn Erso (from Disney’s Rogue One): Switching gears a bit, on the fictional side, one of the most empowering female protagonists to have graced an IMAX screen is Jyn Erso, played by Felicity Jones, in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. A reluctant hero, Erso, who Jones imbues with grace and spunk, represents one of the most pivotal players in the entire Star Wars saga. Let’s face it, Rey (an honorable mention here) wouldn’t have even existed if not for the courage of Erso.
— Katniss Everdeen (from The Hunger Games franchise): Another landmark heroine from a massively popular movie series in IMAX, Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games franchise, kick-started a whole new wave of empowered female protagonists featured in teen fiction adaptations (think the Divergent series). And for good reason. Katniss, immortalized by the incomparable Jennifer Lawrence, represents the kind of dogged heroine of impeachable character that every person could admire. Fun fact: Lawrence, who narrated A Beautiful Planet, told People magazine in 2014 that one of her post-Hunger Games ambitions was to do some voiceover work.
— Imperator Furiosa (from Mad Max: Fury Road): Lastly, what’s a list of some of the most kick-ass modern women (fictional or otherwise) without the revolutionary character, Imperator Furiosa? Played by Charlize Theron with the sort of steely fury rarely seen on the bigscreen, Furiosa is a heroine for the ages. So much so, one nearly forgets the movie is called Mad Max.
— By Andrew Stewart, Manager, Corporate Communications