In case you’ve been living under a rock the last 24 hours: Warner Bros.’ Batgirl movie is dead. It won’t be releasing either in theaters or on HBO Max. The reasons have little to do with the movie’s quality, but with money. Regardless, the Leslie Grace/JK Simmons-starring superhero movie had a lot of expectations, and more than its share of fans eager to see how it fit within the DCEU, especially with Michael Keaton returning as Batman. The decision was shocking to fans, but just as surprised were the directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah.
In a newly released statement on social media, the duo expressed their sadness over Batgirl’s cancellation…
“We are saddened and shocked by the news. We still can’t believe it. As directors, it is critical that our work be shown to audiences, and while the film was far from finished, we wish that fans all over the world would have had the opportunity to see and embrace the final film themselves. Maybe one day they will insha’Allah.”
The duo, who also directed Bad Boys for Life and episodes of Ms. Marvel, had nothing but kind words for the cast they got to work with…
“Our amazing cast and crew did a tremendous job and worked so hard to bring Batgirl to life. We are forever grateful to have been part of that team. It was a dream to work with such fantastic actors like Michael Keaton, J.K. Simmons, Brendan Fraser, Jacob Scipio, Corey Johnson, Rebecca Front and especially the great Leslie Grace, who portrayed Batgirl with so much passion, dedication and humanity.”
“In any case, as huge fans of Batman since we were little kids, it was a privilege and an honor to have been a part of the DCEU, even if it was for a brief moment.”
The statement wraps-up with “Batgirl for Life”.
Meanwhile, we finally got to hear from the star of the film herself. Leslie Grace posted her thoughts on Batgirl’s cancellation on Instagram, while also revealing set photos and footage.
“On the heels of the recent news about our movie ‘Batgirl,’ I am proud of the love, hard work and intention all of our incredible cast and tireless crew put into this film over 7 months in Scotland. I feel blessed to have worked among absolute greats and forged relationships for a lifetime in the process! To every Batgirl fan — THANK YOU for the love and belief, allowing me to take on the cape and become, as Babs said best, ‘my own damn hero!’ Batgirl for life!”
Batgirl found itself in an awkward position; too big to be an HBO Max movie but too small to be the blockbuster WB wants from its superhero movies now. My hope is that someday we’ll get to see a finished version of Batgirl, but that might be a long time coming. The reaction to this has not been good for WB, and who knows? We’ve already seen how effective fan persistence can be when pushing the studio to release films they never intended to.
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