Wonder Woman 1984: How Steve Trevor Returns, Explained

The release of Wonder Woman 1984 is finally here, and the movie answers a ton of questions about the shocking return of Chris Pine’s character Steve Trevor over 60 years after his death in the first film. The mystery of Trevor’s resurrection plays a central role in the plot of Wonder Woman 1984 and motivates Diana Prince in her struggles against Maxwell Lord and Barbara Minerva AKA Cheetah. And while Trevor plays a pivotal part in Wonder Woman’s battle to save the world, it has major ramifications for what actually takes place in the new DC Comics movie.

Warning: Spoilers for Wonder Woman 1984 below. Quit reading now if you don’t want to see those spoilers!

The plot of Wonder Woman 1984 revolves around the Dream Stone, a fantastical artifact that seemingly grants one wish for whoever holds it — but it turns out there is a cursed aspect to the item. Of course, if it’s too good to be true it probably is, and that monkey’s paw aspect affects everyone in the film.

The Dream Stone comes to be possessed by the Smithsonian, where it comes into contact with Wonder Woman who has been living a life without true love since the events of the first movie. Just like Kristen Wiig’s Barbara Minerva makes a wish that leads to her acquiring Wonder Woman’s powers, Gal Gadot’s Diana makes a wish for Steve Trevor to return.

Steve then does make his magical return the next day, tracking Diana down at a party in hopes of discovering the circumstances surrounding his resurrection. While he appears to look like a different person to everyone else, played by actor Kristoffer Polaha, Diana sees him exactly as she remembered.

The movie goes on to explain that Steve Trevor has basically taken over the body of someone who has already existed, a person who has lived his own life. Steve takes Diana back to his apartment where he seemingly lived the life of a typical bachelor. It’s a bit messy, there is no consistency to the decorative aesthetic, and his clothes are completely all over the place.

The way the Dream Stone works, there’s no telling if this person existed before Diana’s wish and reality shifted to accommodate his resurrection, or if this is a person who existed before Wonder Woman wished for Steve Trevor to return and that Steve simply took over his body. We get a major tease toward the latter being the reason why, but the movie leaves a lot of room for questions and exploration.

Wonder Woman 1984 is now streaming on HBO Max and playing in theaters.