As audiences continue to mourn the shelved film, a new Batgirl behind-the-scenes video sees Leslie Grace's titular heroine choking out Brendan Fraser's Firefly. The movie was intended to act as the DC Universe introduction of the In the Heights actor as Barbara Gordon, daughter to J.K. Simmons' Gotham City Police Commissioner Jim Gordon, as she goes from becoming a prospective police officer to the vigilante known as Batgirl, while also combating pyromaniac Firefly, played by Fraser. Despite having wrapped production this past March, Batgirl ended up shelved as new Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav sought to use its tax write-off to make up the $3 billion in debt inherited from the studio merger.
In honor of the new year, Leslie Grace took to her Instagram to share a video reflecting on 2022, including her time working on the now-shelved Batgirl movie. The video included new and previously seen footage from the project, including a set video of Grace's titular heroine choking out Brendan Fraser's Firefly, in a scene in which the two are out of their respective hero and villain suits. Check out the video of their fight, and other snippets from the Batgirl set, below:
Where Batgirl Or Firefly Could Appear In Future DCU Films
Despite the film's cancelation, the door doesn't seem entirely closed for Grace's Batgirl or Fraser's Firefly to appear in future DCU projects, be they movies or shows. At the time of it being shelved, reports circled that WBD were in negotiations with Grace and Batgirl directing duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah to try and work on another project set within the comic book universe, though it's unknown if those negotiations fell through or were closed with a plan for them all to return. Outside of sharing BTS looks at the film in the months since its cancelation, Grace has remained largely quiet about her potential Batgirl future, while Fraser has largely expressed disappointment in its fate and occasionally poked fun at the film not seeing the light of day.
Considering James Gunn and Peter Safran, the new DC Studios heads, have been working on a 10-year plan for the DCU, which has seen the cancelations of Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman 3 and Henry Cavill's Superman return, it's difficult to determine whether Grace's Batgirl and Fraser's Firefly will factor into this plan. With The Flash expected to include both Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck's incarnations of Batman for its multiversal story, and Gunn confirming the character will be "a big part" of the DCU alongside Matt Reeves' Batman universe, it seems possible the Bat Family could still factor into the franchise's future, thus leading to Grace's return. The shelved Batgirl movie was set to confirm that Keaton's Batman had a Robin of his own, something not seen in Tim Burton's films, while a Nightwing film has languished in development hell for the better part of five years.
Given Firefly is also considered to be one of the most recurring members in Batman's rogues gallery, The Dark Knight's future in the DCU could lead to Fraser getting another shot at the role after Batgirl. Whether his pyromaniac villain faces off against Affleck's Batman, who is reportedly returning for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, or Keaton's incarnation, whose initially speculated future replacing Affleck is currently in doubt, has yet to be seen. Regardless of where the two may pop up, the sheer amount of support behind the film since its cancelation should hopefully lead to Gunn and Safran bringing Grace and Fraser back at some point.
Source: Leslie Grace/Instagram
