DC's Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) director Cathy Yan and producer Sue Kroll reveal the film will dig deeper into Harley Quinn's (Margot Robbie) character and switch it up within the DCEU. First appearing in 2016's Suicide Squad, Harley became a fan-favorite character and was regularly cited as one of the best parts of the film. Robbie is one of the few actors from Suicide Squad to remain within the DCEU, next appearing in James Gunn's reboot The Suicide Squad.
First, though, she will play a big role in Birds of Prey. Arriving in February 2020, the film will see Harley teaming up with a group of women as they protect a young girl from a villainous crime lord. The cast includes Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Rosie Perez, Ella Jay Basco, Chris Messina, and Ewan McGregor. Despite Harley's major presence in the trailers and posters, the filmmakers insist Birds of Prey isn't a "Harley Quinn" movie, but instead an ensemble film.
Screen Rant had the opportunity to visit the set of Birds of Prey during production and spoke to those involved with the film about Harley Quinn's character. She starts the film in an interesting place, having just broken up with the Joker. Yan and Kroll both spoke about Harley Quinn's mental health issues and how the film might address them, as well as where her character might go. Yan said:
I think there's such a duality in Harley Quinn, even in just the blue and the pink, and Dr. Harleen Quinzel versus Harley Quinn. Both sides of her are there, and she’s still very much the smart doctor that she once was. She’s still capable of armchair diagnosing anyone - we say that's part of her superpower. But then she can be so easily manipulated and has really low self-esteem and has all of the issues that Joker really brought out in her. So I think this is a great opportunity to explore the woman behind 'Harley Quinn,' and explore that duality, and dive deeper into her psyche.
On the subject of Harley Quinn's morality and whether audiences will be sympathetic to the character, Kroll said:
I think it's complex. I think the movie is very nuanced, when it comes to exactly that. What's also interesting, and you'll start to see as time goes on, is that you can experience that through all these other characters in the film as well. She comes away as somebody who's much more complicated rather than sort of singular… ‘nuts.’
In Suicide Squad, Harley was very much under the Joker's spell despite his abusive nature. Having her take several steps away from him is promising for her character, and it'll be exciting to see how she grows from it. The first trailer already hinted at a more independent Harley as she recovers from her breakup. During Screen Rant's set visit, Kroll also said Birds of Prey will basically ignore the events of Suicide Squad and instead focus on Harley's journey (aka her titular emancipation) from this point forward.
Harley is a fascinating character, and it will be interesting to see her development in Birds of Prey and beyond. Since both Yan and Kroll acknowledged Harley's mental health issues, it can be assumed the film will confront them somehow, even if it is just a little bit. Hopefully this will be done in a beneficial way as they get into Harley Quinn's psyche. Aside from Wonder Woman, Harley is arguably the DCEU's most prominent female character right now, and it's important that this film does her justice, especially if she is going to remain within the DCEU. Harley's future beyond The Suicide Squad is uncertain, but it's not absurd to think that if Birds of Prey is a success, she'll stick around, offering plenty of opportunities to see her grow.
