Gal Gadot is one of the biggest rising stars in Hollywood after her lasso-wielding turn as iconic superhero Wonder Woman - but the actress has admitted she came "as close as it gets" to giving up on acting before landing the coveted part.

The 32-year-old Justice League star said she had contemplated returning to law school to support her family, because she was struggling with the constant rejection in Hollywood.

When asked how close she came to giving up her acting career, Gadot told host Willie Geist on Sunday Today: "I was as close as it gets.

"There's so much 'no' [auditioning in the film and TV industry].

"There's so much rejection in this world that I thought, 'Maybe it's not for me. 'Maybe I should go back to law school instead of dragging my family with me'."

The Fast and the Furious actress - who has two children with her Israeli businessman husband Yaron Varsano - also revealed that she fell into acting after competing in pageants.

She won the title of Miss Israel in 2004, and went on to compete in Miss Universe.

"I never thought about becoming an actress and the opportunity kind of came my way," Gadot continued.

"I started to become more curious about it, and then I fell in love with the profession - but it wasn't like I was growing up dreaming of becoming an actress.

"Then everything changed again."

The star also recently addressed claims that she had refused to reprise her role as Wonder Woman if Brett Ratner was involved in the sequel, following the sexual misconduct claims being made against him.

Speaking toUSA Today, she clarified: "At the end of the day, a lot has been written about my views and the way that I feel, and everyone knows the way that I feel because I'm not hiding anything.

"But the truth is, there's so many people making this movie - it's not just me — and they all echoed the same sentiments.

"Everyone knew the right thing to do. But there was nothing for me to actually come and say because [the decision] was already done before this article came out."

Wonder Woman 2 will be released in cinemas in November, 2019.

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