Chris Pine has revealed that the forthcoming Wonder Woman movie will be set during the first world war.

The actor, who will play the superhero’s love interest, has said that the film will be set before Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the first film in which Wonder Woman, played by Gal Gadot, is set to appear.

“It’s a period we don’t see often,” he said to the Toronto Sun. “It’s usually world war two. Our costume design is incredible. We have scenes with, like, 500 extras all in period dress. I’d never been on a film with extras casting as beautifully done as it is here.”

The film is set to deviate from the comics, where Wonder Woman first appeared during the second world war. Pine will play Steve Trevor, the US intelligence officer whom she returns to safety after his plane crashes on the isolated island where she lives.

“Steve Trevor is a rogue-ish, cynical realist who’s seen the awful brutish nature of modern civilisation,” Pine said. “He’s a worldly guy, a charming guy and it’s going to be a great, fun film. There are some incredibly deep, interesting and morally relevant themes.”

The film will be directed by Monster’s Patty Jenkins, the first female director of a superhero movie. “Patty is just directing the daylights out of it,” he said. “It’s shot beautifully. It feels so wonderfully period, but also has this wonderful pop sensibility.”

Wonder Woman will be part of an ambitious cinematic “universe” that DC hopes will compete with Marvel’s ever-increasing set of films. This year sees the release of both DC’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad. Wonder Woman will be released in 2017.