Gal Gadot, celebrated as one of the most beautiful and graceful actors of our time, unveiled a different side of her superhero journey during a recent interview.
The Wonder Woman star disclosed the challenging and painful consequences she endured while filming the sequel, "Wonder Woman 1984."
Despite her public image of poise and elegance, Gadot's dedication to her role pushed her to her limits and even caused physical discomfort during production. Director Patty Jenkins made a special request of the actress – to forgo using stunt doubles for some of the film's action sequences. Given her close friendship with Jenkins and the director's determination, Gal Gadot felt compelled to accept the challenging task.
Speaking about Patty Jenkins, Gadot remarked, "She is one of my best and closest friends, and it is difficult for me to say no to her. Plus, she has a lot of will."
The film's first trailer offers a glimpse of the intense action scenes, where Gal Gadot can be seen performing a wide array of physically demanding maneuvers. While professional Cirque du Soleil performers handled the most complex and hazardous stunts, Gadot engaged in her share of strenuous scenes.
These physically demanding moments took a toll on the actress, causing her to injure her spine during the rigorous shoot. Yet, despite the pain and physical bruises, Gal Gadot expressed satisfaction with the end result, set to hit theaters in the coming year.
"There were very difficult physical moments. I injured my spine because we literally recorded the film in a real way. But at the same time, it was worth it, and watching the movie several times was totally worth it," she acknowledged.
The emotional strain was not exclusive to the physical challenges, as Gadot was deeply moved to tears upon seeing the final cut of the film. She confessed that for actors, watching themselves on screen can be a surreal experience, marked by self-criticism and anxiety. However, when she viewed "Wonder Woman 1984" for the first time, her emotional connection to the film overwhelmed her.
"For an actor, seeing yourself acting in a movie is always quite strange, because you are very critical of yourself, you are nervous and what you see is yourself," the Israeli actress explained. "I have to say that the first time I saw Wonder Woman 1984, in a provisional cut, I forgot that that was me."
Gadot went on to share her profound emotional reaction to the film, admitting, "And I've invested, I've shot the whole movie and I've read the script a million times, I've shot it for eight months and to suddenly see all the pieces of the puzzle come together and form something so big... I called Patty crying. My reaction was even greater than when I saw the first one."
