The upcoming DCEU movie, Batgirl, has added Ivory Aquino to the cast as Alysia Yeoh, making her the first trans character in a live-action DC Comics movie. Aquino, a Filipina-American actress, is perhaps best known for her role as Cecilia Chung, a transgender activist, in the 2017 ABC miniseries, When We Rise. The actress will be joined in the film by Leslie Grace as the titular Batgirl/Barbara Gordon, J.K. Simmons, who is reprising his Justice League role as Commissioner Jim Gordon, and Michael Keaton, returning as Batman and expected to serve as a mentor to Barbara Gordon. Brendan Fraser will also make an appearance in the upcoming movie as the villain, Firefly.
The DC Comics character, Alysia Yeoh, created by Gail Simone and Ardian Syaf, is known as Barbara Gordon’s best friend and former roommate. She first appeared in the Batgirl Vol. 4 comic from 2011, and is also largely recognized as the first prominent transgender character in a mainstream comic book series. Her dream is to someday become a personal chef, but in the meantime, she works as both a painter and bartender. Now, Batgirl has officially named the person who will bring that character to life on screen.
As reported by Deadline, Aquino has now joined the Batgirl cast as Alysia Yeoh. Aquino, who is also trans herself, is making history in the live-action role as DC Films’ first openly trans character. The actress has yet to officially comment on the news.
This is one of a few exciting updates that have been revealed for Batgirl recently. Just a couple of weeks ago, Grace unveiled the first official look at Barbara Gordon's full Batgirl costume, which was followed by a few set videos captured that revealed the suit in action. Hopefully, now that the casting of Yeoh has been announced, there will be an official peek at what Aquino's live-action portrayal will look like. It will also be interesting to see the dynamic between Grace and Aquino as they bring the characters' close friendship to life. After a bit of speculation surrounding the role of Alysia Yeoh and the character's inclusion in the film, it is nice to now be able to put a face to the name.
While progression has been made in recent years, DC introducing their first live-action trans character is a great step toward better LGBTQ+ representation in film and in the superhero genre in general. There are, unfortunately, still many unknown details about Batgirl, but DC Films has been keeping the anticipation high with each new update. With the addition of Aquino in the breakthrough role alongside Grace and the rest of the star-studded Batgirl cast, the DCEU film is certainly shaping up to be a must-see when it hits HBO Max sometime this year.
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Source: Deadline