'Wonder Woman 1984' Reveals That Chris Pine's Character, Steve Trevor, Is Still Alive

The first Wonder Woman film was accused of ripping one too many pages out of Captain America: The First Avenger's book. But the trailer for Gal Gadot and Patty Jenkins' follow-up film, 1984, distinctly feels like it's own film. OK, so maybe it takes a little influence from Thor: Ragnarok, but the sequel is essentially an '80s superhero movie and the preview left audiences with a big question: How is Chris Pine in it and still alive?

It's a pretty big reveal, as Steve Trevor is the love of Diana's life and the two made a darn good team in the first flick, which is why his death was such a heart-wrenching moment for the Amazonian warrior and audiences.

Chris Pine's involvement in the sequel wasn't kept a secret for very long, so when his name began popping up in the cast list, many just assumed he would be attached to the project for a series of flashback scenes.

But that couldn't have been further from the truth, as his return appeared to be a major plot point for the '80s superhero-action glam fest when the trailer first dropped and now that Wonder Woman 1984 is out, a lot of fans who saw the trailer felt vindicated (myself included) because it turns out (unsurprisingly) Steve Trevor isn't really back. Well he is... but... not really.

Firstly, Diana and Steve partnered up in 1918 to crush some bad guys during World War I and halt some evil plans of world domination yadda, yadda, yadda. Steve, ever the hero, ended up detonating a plane that was filled with explosives while it was in mid-flight, effectively ending a massive threat and his own life. So his resurgence is strange for two reasons: firstly, because the man should totally be dead.

Secondly, because even if he did manage to survive the blast, then why does he look relatively unchanged? Seriously, the guy looks great and if Wonder Woman 1984 ends up being a total stinkfest, at least we can be left with the knowledge that Chris Pine would've done very well for himself in the '80s. The man looks ravishing in a fanny pack for Pete's sake.

The item that was a sizable focal point of 1984 was the watch Steve gave Diana right before he dies where he tells her, "I wish we had more time." Diana holds this magical item everyone and their grandmother is searching for called the Dream Stone, which is a magical device that allows whoever's holding it to have one wish granted. Diana's mind travels back to the same wish that Steve had: that they had more time.

The thing about the dream stone, like most magical items that'll make all of your dreams come true is that it comes at a huge price. Now magic plays a pretty big part in the DC Universe: it's how Swamp Thing comes to be and is one of Superman's weaknesses (next to kryptonite). It's also responsible for bringing Steve Trevor back to life and reunited with Diana.

So how is Chris Pine back in the movie all of a sudden? How does the magic work? Well, as it turns out, his mind and soul's been transported into the body of some engineer who's living in Washington D.C., meaning that he's taken over the physical body of some poor dude who was picked at random by the Dream Stone. Sounds like a small price to pay to get the love of your life back.

Interestingly enough, the "real" face of Steve Trevor's new body is seen by other folks (Hot Tub Time Machine style), but to Diana and the audience, we see Chris Pine.

And if you're worried about having to say goodbye to Steve Trevor again, we hate to break it to you, but, yes. Without spoiling all of the particulars of the movie, the Dream Stone ends up throwing humanity into chaos and needs to be destroyed to save humanity.

It's the only way Diana can defeat Maxwell Lord and stop humanity's endless wish granting. Sure, it means giving up Steve for good, even if it's a decision that he ultimately makes for her. Which has been criticized by some publications.