Just when you think the DC universe in the cinema has calmed down a bit, the next chunk of news is thrown into the crystal-clear pond. This time the message, on new movie with a hugely popular comic book heroine not released in cinemas or on a streaming platform.
It’s the $90 million Batgirl, bringing back Michael Keaton as Batman and JK Simmons as Jim Gordon, establishing In the Heights shooting star Leslie Grace as a superhero, and directed by veteran directors. Despite it the finished film goes into the poison cupboard.
DC’s Batgirl Movie Won’t Be Shown: The Rumors and Official Info
This story has two sides, one from the rumors and one from the official side. Let’s start with the statements that Studio Warner published or confirmed last night.
The official version of the story
Studio Warner has issued a statement on the fate of Batgirl and another Toxic Closet film, Scoob! Holiday Haunt, voiced:
The decision not to publish Batgirl reflects that strategic shift as far as the DC Universe and HBO Max are concerned.
It goes on to say:
Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actress and the choice does not reflect the quality of their presentation. We are the filmmakers and cast of Batgirl and Scoob! indebted and hope we can work with them again in the near future.
With the “strategic shift” means the changes that have occurred since the merger of Warner Media and Discovery. What’s behind it?
As reported by the Hollywood Reporter, the decision is part of savings pending after the Warner-Discovery merger. So Batgirl stands between the chairs, so to speak: That The budget and thus the show value of the film are too low for what cinema audiences are used to. Films like The Batman or Aquaman cost between 150 and 200 million dollars. Therefore, the additional costs of a cinema evaluation are not worthwhile. However, Warner Bros. Discovery also does not want to release films on the streaming platform for which Batgirl was made. So it is not shown at all.
The rumors about Batgirl
So much for the official site. The tabloid New York Post first reported the Batgirl news, citing an inside source at Warner. Accordingly, a start at the end of 2022 was considered. In test screenings, however, the film allegedly did so poorlythat he comes to the siding.
There was concern that a badly received Batgirl film could damage DC as a brand. And Warner Bros. Discovery is in the process of reorganizing that brand, including finding a sort of boss of all projects whose role will mirror that of Kevin Feige in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Now nobody can see Batgirl
Batgirl is anything but a cheap production. It was directed by Bad Boys 3 creators Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. The screenplay is by Christina Hodson, who also wrote the artwork for Bumblebee, Birds of Prey and the upcoming Flash movie. Were with Michael Keaton and JK Simmons two top-class figures from DC film history on board, while The Mummy star Brendan Fraser was set to play villain Firefly. A milestone in terms of representation in the field of comic film adaptations was also to be expected.
Not even showing the film on a streaming platform on principle seems to be one thing above all: a huge waste of talent and money.
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