Wonder Woman has had several live-action adaptations, each with their own take on her costume. Here are Wonder Woman’s best live-action suits.
Throughout her decades of TV and film adaptations, Wonder Woman has had numerous different versions of her iconic costume, some iterations are better than others. Wonder Woman is one of DC’s three most iconic superheroes, but she has unfortunately been adapted to live-action mediums far less often than Superman and Batman. Nevertheless, some of Wonder Woman’s adaptations have had the same cultural impact as the most famous Superman and Batman films and TV shows. Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman TV series and Gal Gadot’s various appearances in the DCEU movie timeline (particularly her 2017 solo film) have proven that Wonder Woman is deservedly one of DC’s most endearing characters outside of the comics.
Wonder Woman’s outfit has changed throughout her history in the comics, but there are elements of it that remain consistent. Having been created shortly before the United States entered World War II, Wonder Woman’s costume is, first and foremost, a patriotic red, white, and blue outfit that also honors her heritage as an Amazon from Greek mythology. Wonder Woman’s logo began as an eagle (simultaneously a symbol of the US and Zeus) but over time, it has evolved into a pair of W’s that remains at least somewhat aquiline. Wonder Woman’s live-action costumes have evolved over time as well, leading to a wide range of outfits to rank from worst to best.
7Cathy Lee Crosby’s Wonder Woman Costume
Wonder Woman’s first successful live-action incarnation was the 1974 TV movie Wonder Woman, which was intended to be the pilot episode of a live-action series. The film starred Cathy Lee Crosby and took heavy inspiration from Wonder Woman’s late 60s and early 70s comics, in which a de-powered Diana Prince felt more like a super-spy than a superhero. Cathy Lee Crosby’s costume, fittingly, also took inspiration from this era, retaining the familiar color scheme, bracelets, and emblem of the classic Wonder Woman costume but otherwise reflecting this short-lived era of the comics. While by no means a bad superhero costume, the 1974 suit does not quite compare to its successors.
6 Linda Harrison’s Wonder Woman Costume
Technically speaking, the first live-action incarnation of Wonder Woman comes from an unaired 1967 short titled Who’s Afraid of Diana Prince? The short, produced by William Dozier of Batman fame, was a comedic spoof of the Wonder Woman mythos that did not ultimately lead to a full TV series as intended. In the short, Diana Prince and Wonder Woman are played by two separate actresses, with the latter (the imaginary alter ego of the former) played by Linda Harrison. Similar to Adam West and Burt Ward’s costumes as Batman and Robin, Harrison’s Wonder Woman suit is a faithful, albeit fairly low-budget, recreation of her costume from the Silver Age comics.
5 Adrianne Palicki’s Wonder Woman Costume
Another unaired TV pilot for a potential Wonder Woman TV series was made in 2011. Starring Adrianna Palicki as Wonder Woman, the pilot drastically rewrote her personality, depicting her as more of an anti-hero than her other comic and onscreen incarnations. For whatever mistakes the unaired pilot made regarding Wonder Woman’s characterization and mythos, however, it at least gave Diana Prince a costume that was accurate to her comic incarnation at the time. DC’s post-Flashpoint reboot and relaunch, The New 52, gave Wonder Woman a new costume designed by Jim Lee, which was accurately recreated in live-action with Adrianne Palicki’s suit.
4 Lynda Carter’s Specialized Wonder Woman Costumes
Lynda Carter’s iteration of Wonder Woman remains one of the most iconic and beloved iterations of the character. Throughout the three-season run of Wonder Woman, Diana Prince had a variety of specialized variations of her superhero costume, often tailored to specific missions and their respective environments. These included a blue bodysuit, a helmeted sub-variant for motorcycle use, and even an old west-themed costume that appeared in one episode. While certainly not as iconic as her main costume, Lynda Carter’s specialized suits added a degree of versatility to an already beloved Wonder Woman TV adaptation.
3 Lynda Carter’s Main Wonder Woman Costumes
Lynda Carter’s main costume in the Wonder Woman TV series was an iconic and highly comic-accurate hybrid of her Bronze Age and Golden Age suits from the comics. With the first season of Wonder Woman taking place during World War II, the series fittingly gave her the old guard eagle emblem but otherwise kept the suit close to its late 70s comic incarnation. Wonder Woman’s second and third seasons jumped ahead to the late 1970s and tweaked the costume accordingly, simplifying the emblem but leaving the rest of the suit largely unchanged. Wonder Woman occasionally wore a ceremonial cape with this suit, but all its variations are deservedly beloved.
2 Gal Gadot’s Golden DCEU Armor
Mark Waid and Alex Ross’s Kingdom Come introduced a new costume for Wonder Woman: A golden suit of Hellenic, aquiline, armor that even included wings. The suit proved so popular that it joined the mainstream DC comic continuities and eventually made its live-action debut in 2020’s Wonder Woman 1984. Gal Gadot’s comic-accurate iteration of Wonder Woman dons the gold eagle armor for an extra edge in her battle with Cheetah. Indeed, the armor’s wings provide her with additional (albeit not indefinite) shielding against her former friend’s strikes. While the future of Gal Gadot and Patty Jenkins’s Wonder Woman films is unclear for now, Diana’s gold eagle Wonder Woman armor was a welcome addition to the series.
1 Gal Gadot’s DCEU Wonder Woman Costume
Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman is one of the most comic-accurate and culturally resonant iterations of the character, not to mention the first to appear in a theatrical film. Fittingly, the best version of Wonder Woman also has the best costume, with Gal Gadot’s suit blending the classic comic look with the outfit of an Ancient Greek Hoplite. The suit retains its red and blue color scheme and eagle emblem but adds knee and shin guards, as well as holsters for Wonder Woman’s shield and sword. The main DCEU suit is so popular that other adaptations and even the post-Rebirth comics themselves quickly adopted the look, cementing it as Wonder Woman’s best costume.
With James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DCU soft-reboot in progress, the futures of most DCEU characters are unclear for the time being. Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman is no exception, as there are conflicting reports regarding her potential future as the DCU’s Wonder Woman. Whether or not Gal Gadot remains in the Wonder Woman role, the DCU presents an opportunity to give the character yet another live-action suit.