Wonder Woman 1984 is a ways off yet, but with filming of the highly anticipated sequel now taking place, Patty Jenkins has served us up a look at Pedro Pascal’s enigmatic character.
Known for his parts in Narcos and Game of Thrones, Pascal’s rumored to be playing a villainous role in the movie, though it’s difficult to work out precisely who it might be from this picture (seen in the gallery below). Let’s run down what we know, though.
Firstly, he appears to be some kind of businessmen, and the 1980s setting might indicate that Wonder Woman’s going to do battle with a yuppie bad guy at some point in the film. So far, we know that the narrative revolves around a conflict with the Soviet Union and her battles against Kristen Wiig’s superpowered archaeologist Cheetah. Pascal’s character doesn’t appear particularly Soviet to me, though. He’s dressed too snazzily for that.
My bet (and I will admit, I’m not basing this on much) is that this is our first look at Maxwell Lord, a character introduced in DC Comics in Giffen and Dematteis’ Justice League #1 in 1987. Depicted as a clever and cunning businessman, Lord was responsible for forming the Justice League International, whose heroism he attempted to use for his own evil ends. He’s also famous for his interactions with Wonder Woman, perhaps most notoriously when she, uh, snaps his neck, killing him.
This act of violence is broadcast out of context throughout the world, ruining Diana’s reputation as a warrior of peace and alienating her from her fellow superheroes. If something like this does happen in Wonder Woman 1984, it’d go a long way to explain why she’s moved into a mild seclusion by the time Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice rolls around.