Connie Nielsen (Gladiator) has joined the cast of Warner Bros.’ highly anticipated Wonder Woman, directed by Patty Jenkins (Monster) from a screenplay by Jason Fuchs (Pan). The film stars Gal Gadot (Furious 7) as the titular DC Comics superhero.

Nielsen will play Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons and mother of Princess Diana, aka Wonder Woman. The movie will explore Diana’s origins and home, plus her first encounter with American airman and romantic interest Captain Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), who crash-lands on Paradise Island and meets the Amazonian princess. Pine has confirmed that the film is partly set during World War I. Robin Wright (Everest), Danny Huston (Pressure), David Thewlis (Anomalisa) and Ewen Bremner (Exodus: Gods and Kings) round out the cast.

Nielsen also played royalty in her best-known role as the daughter of Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris) in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator. The celebrated movie was nominated in 2001 for 12 Oscars and took home 5, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Russell Crowe). Nielsen’s recent credits include TV appearances in Fox’s The Following and CBS’ The Good Wife.

The feature is currently filming in the U.K. and Italy, and is slated for release on June 23, 2017.