Wonder Woman Movie Villains Explained

General Erich Ludendorff

Danny Huston Plays General Erich Ludendorff in the film - a rogue general who is using the German army and WWI to further his own insidious ends (much like Red Skull in Captain America: The First Avenger).

As Germany prepares to surrender and sign a peace armistice with the allies, Ludendorff taps the chemist Doctor Maru (Elena Anaya) to create a gas that they will drop all over Europe, killing millions of people and giving Germany the edge in the great war. However, as many fans have suspected, Ludendorff is just a human shell for Ares, God of War - which we learn when Doctor Maru gifts him with a gas that can temporarily restore the godlike power he has since lost, while trapped in a weakened human form.

In Wonder Woman's mythology, Ares is the son of Zeus, who went mad. Zeus created the Amazons to protect the world from Ares, but he eventually enslaved them and went on the warpath, killing the Greek Gods (including Zeus). Zeus created Themyscira to hide the Amazons, as well as his one secret weapon to defeat Ares: The God Killer.

Little does Ares know that his half-sister, Diana, is coming to end him - unless he ends her first.

Doctor Maru

Doctor Maru (Elena Anaya) is a chemist who director Patty Jenkins describes as the type of person who has suffered great pain (hence her mask), and want to then inflict that pain on others. She is the driving force behind Ares' plan, as she is developing a gas that would wipe out millions of people if it were dropped over Europe. More than that, she seems to be swayed by Ares' power; a scene of the two of them planning shows that the God of War instills her with a confidence she doesn't otherwise have.

DC Comics fans will of course recognize Maru as the DC Extended Universe version of "Doctor Poison" the name of several characters in DC Comics who have all battled Wonder Woman. The version of the character in the film borrows lightly from several versions of the comics, but is ultimately a new spin on the character, for the film.

More Wonder Woman

Are you excited for Wonder Woman to hit theaters? It's currently ranked #8 on our Anticipation Rankings below, so be sure to vote and help it rise to the top!

Before she was Wonder Woman, she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained to be an unconquerable warrior. Raised on a sheltered island paradise, when an American pilot crashes on their shores and tells of a massive conflict raging in the outside world, Diana leaves her home, convinced she can stop the threat. Fighting alongside man in a war to end all wars, Diana will discover her full powers…and her true destiny.

Joining Gadot in the international cast are Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, David Thewlis, Danny Huston, Elena Anaya, Ewen Bremner and Saïd Taghmaoui. Patty Jenkins directs the film from a screenplay by Allan Heinberg and Geoff Johns, story by Zack Snyder and Allan Heinberg, based on characters from DC Entertainment. Wonder Woman was created by William Moulton Marston.

The film is produced by Charles Roven, Zack Snyder, Deborah Snyder and Richard Suckle, with Rebecca Roven, Stephen Jones, Wesley Coller and Geoff Johns serving as executive producers. Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with RatPac-Dune Entertainment, an Atlas Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual production, Wonder Woman.

The film will be released on June 2, 2017.

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