When the wave of sexual abuse scandals started boiling over in Hollywood, one name kept popping up: Brett Ratner. The director and producer has an ugly reputation for sexual harassment, reportedly bullying women into sexual relationships with him and lying about them if they refuse. Actor Ellen Page recently wrote a horrific Facebook post detailing the treatment she endured from Ratner on the set of X-Men: The Last Stand.
All this has led to a sharp blow to Ratner’s fortunes in Hollywood (his upcoming Hugh Hefner biopic starring Jared Leto has been shelved indefinitely) but now Ratner’s up against one of Hollywood’s newest and biggest stars: Gal Gadot. According to Page Six, Gadot has told Warner Bros. that she won’t be signing on for a Wonder Woman sequel unless Ratner’s kicked off the project. As Page Six writes:
[lborder]The source added of Israeli-born Gadot, “She’s tough and stands by her principles. She also knows the best way to hit people like Brett Ratner is in the wallet. She also knows that Warner Bros. has to side with her on this issue as it develops. They can’t have a movie rooted in women’s empowerment being part-financed by a man accused of sexual misconduct against women.”
[/lborder]Ratner’s production company RatPac-Dune Entertainment helped produce the first installment, which went on to become the highest-grossing movie of the summer. They were also on board to help put the sequel together, but if Gadot stands her ground, it’s all but guaranteed that Ratner will have to go. At this point, Gadot could probably demand the sun, moon and stars and Warner Bros. would start talking to NASA about how to make it happen.
But regardless, it’s good to see a number of celebrities starting to use their influence for good. When Gadot signed on up as Wonder Woman, she was a little-known Israeli actress. Now she’s a force to be reckoned with and, hopefully, a sign of a better entertainment industry to come.
