Despite finishing shooting a few months ago, Warner Bros. decided to scrap DC’s newest superhero film, Batgirl.
“The decision to not release Batgirl reflects our leadership’s strategic shift as it relates to the DC universe and HBO Max. Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actor and this decision is not a reflection of her performance. We are incredibly grateful to the filmmakers of Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt and their respective casts and we hope to collaborate with everyone again in the near future,” as announced by the Warner Bros. Picture spokesperson.
Leslie Grace was supposed to take the mantle as the titular character as well as her day persona, Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Gotham Police Commissioner Gordon. The film also features the return of Michael Keaton as the caped crusader, Batman. Brendan Fraser was also the main antagonist of the story as he portrays the supervillain Firefly. But, even though the production is almost finished, Warner Bros. opted to not release the movie.
Batgirl, a $90 Million movie gone to waste. But, why?
- Originally, the budget for the film was about $70 Million. But, due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, the budget exploded to $90 Million.
- Run by Jason Killar and Ann Sarnoff, Batgirl was supposed to be an HBO Max premiere. However, after the Warner Bros. merger, the latest plan was to have a theatrical release for the movie.
- What could have possibly made Leslie Grace as Batgirl now a distant memory? Well, there are a lot of rumors and speculations about the reasons behind this incident and we are going to take a look at all of them.
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According to Variety, the main problem may lie in financial and monetary problems a.k.a. TAXES.
- It may seem absurd but isn’t it more problematic to scrap a $90 Million project without a slight chance of getting something in return? Without an official release, WB won’t be getting any money out of it. Plus, they are almost done in production so that makes it a bigger problem.
- After test screening, Batgirl was poorly received by the critics, saying that the film will be “irredeemable”. Warner Bros. seems to have understood the situation and just scrapped the whole project to cut further losses and tarnish what they have started in the DCEU.
Well, to be honest, nobody even knows a Batgirl movie was being developed by the studio. They are definitely getting left behind by their Marvel counterpart, the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe).
Another fan theory believes that they want to focus on Ben Affleck instead of Michael Keaton reprising his role as Batman.
Batgirl was previously under the past administration in WB. With some internal changes in the company, Batgirl may have received the shorter end of the stick.
- The DCEU is a bit complicated now that they have many concurring actors playing the same role (i.e. Batman). There was Ben Affleck, then there was Robert Pattinson. Then, there’s Michael Keaton as Batman (again).
- Because of that, the universe they are trying to make looks like a mess sometimes. With Ben Affleck confirmed to be in Aquaman 2, it may sound radical to shy away from Keaton playing the masked vigilante.
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DC’s Batgirl got canceled – what’s next for Warner Bros.?
When you think WB could go any further, think again. Aside from the studio throwing Batgirl out of the window, they also shelved Scoob!: Holiday Haunt. The animated sequel to the 2020 movie ‘Scoob!’ costs $40 Million but WB decided to do it anyway. With a lot of projects getting shelved, what could be happening with Warner Bros. Pictures?
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