Professor Marston & The Wonder Women is an upcoming biopic. Based on its name, it should come as no surprise to learn that said movie is centered around the creator of Wonder Woman, William Moulton Marston, and the two most important women in his life, Elizabeth Holloway Marston and Olivia Byrne, who are said to have contributed to the creation of said character to various extents. The recent trailer makes it clear that Professor Marston & The Wonder Women will focus on not just the creation of Wonder Woman but also the relationship between those three people, which is appropriate because one cannot be understood without understanding the other.
Regardless, people might be interested to know that the biopic is both written and directed by Angela Robinson, who is known for examining gay and lesbian issues in her movies. Furthermore, William Marston, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, and Olivia Byrne will be played by Luke Evans, Rebecca Hall, and Bella Heathcote, who should be recognizable to a lot of movie-goers because of projects that include but are not limited to Beauty and the Beast, Christine, and The Man in the High Castle.
Who Was Professor Marston?
In brief, Professor Marston refers to Professor William Moulton Marston, a psychologist who commented that he saw a great deal of potential for comic books to be used as an educational tool. As a result, he came to the attention of a comic books publisher who hired him on as an educational consultant for a couple of the companies that would go on to form DC Comics. In time, Marston came up with the idea for a new superhero who would use love rather than more violent means to overcome their enemies, but it was his wife Elizabeth who suggested making said superhero a woman.
Who Were the Wonder Women?
With that said, it is important to note that the two most important women in Marston’s life contributed more to Wonder Woman than that. First, there was Elizabeth Holloway Marston, who was Marston’s wife as well as both an attorney and a psychologist. Second, there was Olive Byrne, who started out as Marston’s student at college but went on to become a research assistant as well as a lover. In fact, it is interesting to note that all three people lived together in the same household, though the conventions of the time meant that Byrne had to pretend to be Marston’s widowed sister-in-law.
Regardless, it is common knowledge that Wonder Woman was based on these two women to various extents. For example, Marston has stated that Wonder Woman’s bracelets were based on a pair of bracelets that Byrne would wear, while some scholars have suggested that the appearance of the character was based on Byrne’s appearance as well. However, the most important influence in the creation of Wonder Woman might have been Marston’s particular interpretation of feminism, which could not help but have been influenced by both his wife and his domestic partner. After all, both of them were willing to seek out more for themselves instead of letting themselves settle for what was conventional, which was striking for a time when opportunities for women were so limited.
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