Wonder Woman 2 Will Take Diana to America

That ol' argument that female superheroes don't sell?

Although the bitter taste of "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" still lingers in my mouth, DC's release of "Wonder Woman" more than makes up for their past misfires. Its significance goes far beyond even that though, thanks in large part to its massive $223 million opening.

The film, starring Gadot as the beloved Amazonian warrior, had a stronger opening than a number of its male-focused Marvel counterparts, including Iron Man, Thor, Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain America and their sequels, and DC predecessor Man of Steel.

Wonder Woman has finally smashed the superhero glass ceiling.

A THR profile of Jenkins hints that, while Wonder Woman took place during World War I, Wonder Woman 2 will be "contemporary-set", though Jenkins told Uproxx "the plan" is to stay in the past.

It also broke the opening box office record for a movie directed by a woman, pulling in around US$101m (NZ$200m) at the USA box office alone, easily eclipsing the previous record held by Sam Taylor-Johnson's Fifty Shades of Grey, which debuted to US$85.1m in 2015. And so, you know, there is always that opportunity in any movie with a metaphor to use to make something handsome that really touches people.

Patty Jenkins and actress Gal Gadot at the Los Angeles "Wonder Woman" premiere. "It's a lovely story to tell, [and it's] an important time to tell it with people that I love". As Wonder Woman producer Charles Roven told CinemaBlend, "Nothing has been written". Everyone from Joss Whedon to Krysten Ritter gave the movie a lot of love on Twitter.

The Warner Bros. and DC Comics film had generated a huge buzz, based partly on a critical reception that was unusually warm for a superhero film; it got a 93 percent rating on the Rotten Tomatoes website.

"Wonder Woman" is now playing nationwide. And this in a summer season that was down 9% from a year ago going into this weekend.