Warner Bros. and DC Films have reportedly shelved Batgirl, meaning the film will not receive a theatrical or streaming release despite it being in the final stages of post-production.
The film was directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, and was set to star In the Heights‘ Leslie Grace in the titular role as Barbara Gordon/Batgirl. Other stars included Brendan Fraser as Firefly, J. K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon, and Michael Keaton reprising his role as Batman some three decades after starring as the Caped Crusader in 1992’s Batman Returns.
The film, which was expected to premiere on HBO Max within the year, was filmed between November 2021 and March of this year, and was greenlit with a budget of $70million (which reportedly rose to over $90million during filming due to COVID-related delays and shutdowns). Despite this, it will not be released on any platform.
According to The New York Post, who first broke the story, the decision not to release the film can be attributed Warner Bros.’ new management following its merger with Discovery. CEO David Zaslav is reportedly seeking to make DC titles large, theatrical events, and following poor test screenings, the studio decided that Batgirl doesn’t fit that criteria. Warner Bros. Discovery have not commented on their decision to cancel the film’s release.
While Grace doesn’t appear to have any more films in the immediate pipeline, Brendan Fraser is set to star in The Whale this year, and Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon in 2023. Keaton fans will still get to see the actor reprise his role as Bruce Wayne when he does so in next year’s The Flash.
