Original Wonder Woman star Lynda Carter has paid tribute to the “authentic” Aretha Franklin, who died Thursday aged 76.
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“There was no one like Aretha. It was always a privilege to hear Aretha perform,” Carter wrote on Twitter. “But more than that, she was always her own woman with no apologies — ever. She was authentic in every way. She will be missed.”
The “Respect” and “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” singer and 18-time Grammy Award winner passed away Thursday from advanced pancreatic cancer.
Carter is best known for her four-year tenure as Diana Prince, a.k.a. Amazon warrior Wonder Woman, in the 1975 live-action television series. She has since appeared in a recurring role on another DC Comics adaptation, TV’s Supergirl, where she plays President Olivia Marsdin.
The actress, now 67, previously revealed talks for an appearance in Wonder Woman 1984, follow-up to director Patty Jenkins’ big screen blockbuster headlined by Gal Gadot.
“Gal Gadot and Patty Jenkins, we’re soul sisters,” Carter said on Megyn Kelly Today. “[An appearance] is up to Patty Jenkins. I’ve been talking to her about it, and she’s given me some hints about it. And I guess it’s up to Warner Bros. if they want to spend the money.”
“Lynda is one of the dearest people to us, has been a great mentor and dear friend. And we actually desperately tried to get her in the first one and we had the scheduling that couldn’t work, so she’s always been a part of our Wonder Woman family,” Jenkins told ET in January. “We won’t say anything yet, but we certainly — there’s no lack of trying.”
The 1980s-set sequel sees Diana navigate the Cold War as she’s pit against the Soviet Union and new super-powered enemy Cheetah (Kristen Wiig). Gadot and Wiig are joined by series newcomer Pedro Pascal in a yet-to-be-revealed role and returning star Chris Pine, who again plays Steve Trevor, a World War II hotshot pilot who met a heroic and explosive end in Wonder Woman.
Jenkins described 1984 as a “totally different film” than its predecessor, saying it draws upon “things that we love” from the first, but is “its own movie completely” and “an entirely new adventure.”
Wonder Woman 1984 opens November 1, 2019.
