“There was a part where they said she was full of compassion”

While a lot of actors who take on roles playing popular comic book characters use those comics or previous films as inspiration for their characters, Gal Gadot took a different approach as she prepared to take on the role of Wonder Woman.

During the Vanity Fair Cocktail Hour Live! event earlier this week, the actress revealed that she based her iteration of the famous superhero on another iconic figure: Princess Diana. The director of Wonder Woman, Patty Jenkins, drew the same connection.

“I remember watching a documentary about Princess Diana and there was a part where they said she was full of compassion and always cared for the people and that was like, ‘Ding, ding, ding,’ that should be the Wonder Woman we have,” Gal explained.

She went on to reveal that she wanted to put a woman on screen who was both inspiring and relatable, saying, “How can you connect to a goddess that’s super strong and has it all and [is] super perfect? I wanted to show her vulnerabilities and heart.”

This isn’t the first time the Israeli actress attributed her character to Princess Diana, letting fans know the late Princess of Wales was her inspiration back in 2017.

Almost four years ago, when Wonder Woman was first headed to theaters, Gadot shared with a packed house at San Diego Comic-Con that she based her character, Diana Prince, off of Princess Diana.

“Wonder Woman has the strength of a goddess and the heard of a human,” she explained at the time. “[Princess Diana] said she leads from her heart and not from her head. And I think the same is true of our Diana.

Since that day in 2017, Gal has played Wonder Woman in two films, the latest being 2020’s Wonder Woman 1984, which premiered in theaters and on HBO Max on Christmas Day. The star is already set to reprise her role in a third film, Wonder Woman 3, alongside director Patty Jenkins.

“As fans around the world continue to embrace Diana Prince, driving the strong opening weekend performance of Wonder Woman 1984, we are excited to be able to continue her story with our real life Wonder Women — Gal and Patty — who will return to conclude the long-planned theatrical trilogy,” said Warner Bros. chief Toby Emmerich said at the time.

A release date for the third installment of the franchise has not yet been announced.