Star Leslie Grace has teased a dark origin story for Barbara Gordon in Batgirl. In the DC Comics, the title of Batgirl has been held by multiple heroines, including Betty Kane and Cassandra Cain, but of them all, Barbara is perhaps the most popular incarnation of the character. Barbara made her comics debut in 1961 as the daughter of the Gotham City Police Commissioner Jim Gordon, and she soon after made her first live-action appearance in Adam West's Batman TV series. Later, Alicia Silverstone portrayed the character in Joel Schumacher's 1997 Batman & Robin movie, but since then, Barbara hasn't made any other live-action appearances. Now, however, the beloved protagonist is getting a solo film of her own, as a Batgirl movie is currently in development at HBO Max.
The Batgirl movie has been gestating for some time. Initially, Joss Whedon was supposed to write, direct, and produce the film, but he exited the project in 2018, citing troubles with defining his take on the story. Once he left, WB and DC Films hired The Flash writer Christina Hudson to pen the screenplay. Then, in 2021, Bad Boys for Life duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah came on as directors, and in July the movie made further progress by naming In The Heights star Leslie Grace as its Batgirl. Since the announcement, Grace has been actively teasing fans with details, and she might have just spilled the beans about Batgirl's potential premise.
In a conversation with Elle Magazine, Grace hints that Batgirl will serve as a dark origin story for Barbara Gordon. She reveals that Barbara has been underestimated all her life, which is something Grace could relate to, being the youngest sibling in her family. But in the upcoming movie, her character dons the cape because she wants to bring some positive change in the lives of people:
"I can’t say much about what she is going to do, but Batgirl becomes her own hero. [Her origin story] is crazy dark, like a lot of other superheroes, but I like that she becomes Batgirl because she wants to make a difference in the world. She feels like people underestimate her as Barbara Gordon, and I relate to that."
At the moment, other details on Batgirl remain slim. The movie is currently in pre-production, and it is believed that filming could begin in Glasglow next month. With production approaching, it does seem that Batgirl has ramped up development. Recently, during the DC FanDome event, the concept art for Grace's superhero costume was unveiled, and only days later it was confirmed that The Outpost's Jacob Scipio had joined the Batgirl cast, presumably as the villain Firefly. Other reports also point to J. K. Simmons reprising his Justice League role as Jim Gordon, but that news has yet to be verified.
The idea of the Batgirl movie being a dark origin story is bound to evoke mixed reactions within the DCEU fandom. Previously, the poorly executed darkness of some films like Man of Steel and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice hadn't clicked with audiences and critics, which is why the franchise switched over to more joyful, vibrant movies like Aquaman and Shazam!. However, Grace's comments suggest the movie is headed in a different direction creatively, which could be good or bad depending on how the story and character arcs are ultimately executed. It's only a matter of days before Batgirl kicks off production, so hopefully, fans will be able to make more sense of the film's tone as set images and BTS clips begin to surface.
Source: Elle
