United Nations pulls the plug on Wonder Woman ambassador campaign

Wonder Woman type Movie

Wonder Woman is a United Nations ambassador no longer.

Less than two months after the U.N. named the iconic DC Comics superhero an honorary ambassador for the empowerment of women and girls, the international organization has ended the campaign, which was intended to run through 2017.

A U.N. spokesman confirmed the news to Reuters, adding that past campaigns using fictional characters often ran for mere days or weeks. Past U.N. honorary ambassadors include Winnie the Pooh, Tinker Bell, and Angry Birds.

When the Wonder Woman campaign was first announced in October, some criticized the U.N. for choosing “an overtly sexualized” character instead of a real-life feminist role model, and almost 45,000 people have signed a petition asking the U.N. to reconsider. The U.N. itself has also faced increased criticism lately for its own lack of female leadership.

“Although the original creators may have intended wonder Woman to represent a strong and independent ‘warrior’ woman with a feminist message, the reality is that the character’s current iteration is that of a large breasted, white woman of impossible proportions, scantily clad in a shimmery, thigh-baring body suit with an American flag motif and knee-high boots — the epitome of a ‘pin-up’ girl,” the petition read. “This is the character that the United Nations has decided to represent a globally important issue — that of gender equality and empowerment of women and girls.”

In October, on-screen Wonder Women Lynda Carter and Gal Gadot united for a U.N. ceremony honoring the character in her 75th year, with both actresses testifying about Wonder Woman’s cultural impact.

“In some magical and mystical way, there lies within each of us Wonder Woman,” Carter told the audience at the time. “She is real. She lives and she breathes. I know this because she lives in me, and she lives in the stories that these women tell me, day in and day out. I see it in the letters and in the stories. I read it on social media. I see it in the tears that fall from the eyes of the women who say it saved them from some awful thing that they endured — because they saw that they could do something great.”

Episode Recaps Previous The biggest snubs and surprises of the 2018 Oscar nominations By Christopher Rosen

The 10 best (and 5 worst) movies of 2017 By EW Staff

Justice League production designer shares secrets of film's design By Nicole Sperling

Justice League: Go behind the scenes of Zack Snyder's superhero mash-up By Nicole Sperling

A (brief) history of the Justice League – in all its incarnations By John Jackson Miller

From Avengers to X-Men, How 56 Superhero Movies Fared at the Box Office By Joey Nolfi

Summer 2017's Biggest Box Office Winners and Losers By Joey Nolfi

Step Into the World of Wonder Woman In New Warner Bros. Exhibition By Maureen Lee Lenker

Young Girls Dressed As Their Favorite Superheroes, In Their Own Words By Mary Sollosi

Oscars 2018: From Wonder Woman to Get Out, 34 contenders so far By Joey Nolfi

The 10 Best Movies of The Year (So Far) By Leah Greenblatt

Wonder Woman: Gal Gadot's Best Style Looks By Cristina Everett

The Evolution of Wonder Woman's Look By Devan Coggan

Wonder Woman: Go inside the film's stunning visual world By Darren Franich

Wonder Woman: 7 Exclusive Photos From the Powerful New Film By EW Staff

Get a First Look at Mattel's Wonder Woman Toy Lineup By Devan Coggan

Wonder Woman trailer: 21 mysteries, clues, and secret references By Anthony Breznican

Wonder Woman: Gal Gadot seen in exclusive new photos By EW Staff Next