The Batgirl movie starring Leslie Grace has reportedly been scrapped completely. The film was directed by Bad Boys for Life filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah and starred Grace in the titular role. Michael Keaton also reprises his role as Bruce Wayne/Batman in Batgirl, with Brendan Fraser cast as the villain Firefly. J.K. Simmons came back to the role of Commissioner Gordon for the film, a role he first played in Zack Snyder's Justice League.
Originally, Batgirl was set to debut on HBO Max as an original DC film and was expected sometime in late 2022. Recently, a number of DC films and TV shows have been given the axe, as the studio merged with Discovery, putting it under new management and with a new direction, seeing the end of many CW shows, as well as a planned Wonder Twins movie. Batgirl wrapped production earlier this year, but apparently it hasn't turned out as well as WB had hoped.
Now, it's being reported that Batgirl has been scrapped completely, as test screenings and reception at WB Discovery have been poor. Per The Wrap, WB Discovery leadership has determined that in spite of reshoots and more money being put into the project, the film still was unable to turn out how they wanted, causing them to shelve it entirely. Under the new regime, DC titles are being looked at as big theatrical event films, and apparently Batgirl doesn't fit that category as-is. Reportedly, WB Discovery is still fond of the filmmakers and Grace and are actively looking for a way to work with them again.
Batgirl's price tag is reported as being between $90-$100 million dollars and was budgeted for an HBO Max release, not a theatrical one, which is said to be one of the reasons for the lack of faith in releasing the project, as it wouldn't hold up to theatrical scrutiny. Fan speculation about the lack of Batgirl's presence at this year's Comic-Con now seems to have a reason, as WB Discovery continues their pivot to the new leadership's model for DCEU's future. The shelved Batgirl will now go down in history as one of the most expensive movies to never see the light of day.
There will no doubt be a hashtag movement by online fans to see Batgirl released, but if it's as bad as is being reported, it may not be the best movement to get behind. The curiosity to see a shelved project will always be there, similar to Zack Snyder's Justice League, which was reshot and released in theaters to disastrous effect, only to be redeemed by the director's full vision on HBO Max. The thought may be that Batgirl could get the same treatment, but Snyder's vision was far more realized and set in stone in order to course correct, whereas Batgirl sounds like it needs far more work than is worth the effort at this point. It doesn't necessarily mean Grace's Batgirl couldn't still appear in the DCEU, but it won't be in the Batgirl solo film as planned.
Source: The Wrap
