Gal Gadot Was Ready To Quit Acting Prior To Landing ‘Wonder Woman’ Role

Gal Gadot may be flying high as a Hollywood icon now that she’s starred in several Marvel movies, but the Wonder Woman 1984 star came very close to quitting Hollywood for good. 

The Israeli actress apparently had grown so tired of the constant rejection she was getting that she was ready to throw in the towel and give up the acting. Luckily, she landed the historic role of Wonder Woman and her life changed forever. 

Gal Gadot got tired of the rejection from Hollywood

Gadot had been in the movie business for a while before she started having doubts about her career as an actress. She’d had minor roles in films such as 2009’s Fast & Furious, but wasn’t seeing the success she’d expected. 

Before landing the audition for Wonder Woman, she was seriously considering giving up acting for good. 

“This profession, the rejection, ooh dude, it’s tough,” Gadot said in a resurfaced 2017 interview with Jimmy Fallon. “I had so many almosts, and another camera test … and another role, and another role … and I was like, telling my husband, ‘I’m not sure how long I can take it, dragging my family to Los Angeles, doing this … “

Nobody told Gal Gadot she was auditioning for the ‘Wonder Woman’ role 

However, things changed for her after a routine trip to Los Angeles for a few other auditions. While there, she got a phone call from director Zach Synder, who wouldn’t tell her what role she was auditioning for. 

“On the same trip—we were in Los Angeles—I got a phone call from Zach Snyder, who wanted to audition me for this secret role,” Gadot said. “I was like, ‘Ok, sure … I’ll do that.’” 

As confusing as it sounds to audition for a role with no context, it’s even more challenging to do it. 

“You have lines, you get the lines, but you have no idea what the story is about, who’s the character, nothing,” Gadot said. 

She was ready to quit acting for good 

After her audition, Gadot was even more unsure about the future of her career. Upon returning to her homeland of Israel, she had to do some soul searching. 

“We set, did the audition, I went back to Israel to shoot an Israeli movie, and I didn’t know if I wanted to continue acting afterwards,” Gadot said.

She got called back for camera tests and still had no idea what the role was 

Gadot’s fortune changed after her agent gave her a follow up call about the role. Apparently, Synder liked her and wanted her to come back in for camera tests. 

However, Gadot still had no idea what the role was. 

“Anyway, I’m in Israel, I get a phone call, they tell me that they want to do a camera test,” Gadot said. “I’m like, ‘Again? Camera test again? Another almost almost?’ And then I’m like, ‘Ok, whatever, what am I being tested for? What’s the part? And then my agent goes, ‘They didn’t tell you?’ I’m like, ‘No.’ So no one knows …”

After acing the screen tests, Gadot finally got a call while sitting on an airplane confirming she got the role. She was so excited, she started screaming on the plane, startling everyone.