All Our Hopes Are Pinned on You

[[F I L M]] * If it weren’t for Texan Tom DeLay’s ignoble exit from the U.S. House of Representatives, this might well have been the best news of the week: Waifish 32-year-old British actress Kate Beckinsale is reportedly being considered for the role of comic-book superhero Wonder Woman in a 2007 film being written and directed by Josh Whedon, of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame.

Reports are that Whedon is “very happy” with the opportunity to headline Beckinsale, who was probably first noticed by American audiences in the big-budget 2001 film Pearl Harbor, and has since enhanced her reputation by starring in the 2003 horror flick Underworld and (with 20 pounds of extra padding) portraying actress Ava Gardner in 2004’s The Aviator. The casting of a new Wonder Woman--a feminist character co-created by William and Elizabeth Marston for a 1941 edition of All Star Comics, and brought to the small screen by Lynda Carter in a campy 1976-1979 TV series--has been the source of speculation for months now. Also said to be in the running are Evangeline Lilly (Lost), anorexic teen sensation Lindsay Lohan (Herbie: Fully Loaded), and Buffy alumnae Sarah Michelle Gellar and Charisma Carpenter. The 35-year-old Carpenter, who many have seen as the frontrunner in this contest, told a reporter she’s willing to put off having another child, in order to nab the role of Amazon princess-turned-crimefighter. “I’m not holding my breath,” she said, “but I’m crossing my fingers and toes and praying.”

Beckinsale, though, has my vote. If she could look anywhere near as remarkable in red boots, star-studded hot pants, and a golden lasso as she did in black Spandex for Underworld and its sequel, Underworld: Evolution (2006), I might actually have to buy a ticket for Wonder Woman.

ADDENDUM: Just to get you into the mood for a return of WW, click here for the TV theme song. Boy, was that thing cheesy!