DC has been trying to bring Barbara Gordon's Batgirl to screens for a while, with among the most famous attempts being from Joss Whedon in 2017. Recently, Batgirl finally got off the ground at Warner Bros. after Leslie Grace was cast with Ms. Marvel directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah helming the project that was filmed this year, with Scottish city Glasgow doubling as Gotham.
Despite having wrapped production on the HBO Max original movie, Warner Bros. Discovery decided to scrap the project that was made under the old management regime. The move has had fallout across Hollywood with many calling the decision unprecedented and shocking.
Now, the directors of the project responded to the cancellation of their film, with one of the filmmakers actually having discovered the news at his wedding.
Batgirl Directors Respond to DC Cancellation
In a recent post on Instagram, Batgirl directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah responded to the shock cancelation of their DC flick. The directing duo revealed their pride to have worked in the Batman mythos with a cast of "fantastic actors," before sharing their hopes that fans would one day see the film which was "far from finished:"
"We are saddened and shocked by the news. We still can't believe it. As directors, it is critical that our work be shown to audiences, and while the film was far from finished, we wish that fans all over the world would have had the opportunity to see and embrace the final film themselves. Maybe one day they will insha'Allah.Our amazing cast and crew did a tremendous job and worked so hard to bring Batgirl to life. We are forever grateful to have been part of that team. It was a dream to work with such fantastic actors like Michael Keaton, JK Simmons, Brendan Fraser, Jacob Scipio, Corey Johnson, Rebecca Front and especially the great Leslie Grace, who portrayed Batgirl with so much passion, dedication and humanity.In any case, as huge fans of Batman since we were little kids, it was a privilege and an honor to have been a part of the DCEU, even if it was for a brief moment."
El Arbi commented on the post saying he is now "gonna try to enjoy [his] honeymoon," having just discovered the news at the time of his wedding.
"And now I’m gonna try to enjoy my honeymoon with my own superhero Loubna Khalkhali"
The Tragic Fate of Batgirl
Obviously, many are upset to hear Batgirl will never see the light of day, especially after so much of the premise seemed so interesting. Leslie Grace looked amazing suited up as Batgirl, the casting of Brendan Fraser as the villainous Firefly was exciting, and Michael Keaton was placed to once again return as Batman.
While it's tragic that fans will never get to see what was planned with Batgirl, the end of development is even sadder for the cast and crew involved. After all, everyone involved undoubtedly already poured everything they have into the project, especially since the shooting had already wrapped several months ago and post-production was well underway.
Warner Bros. has made clear its interest in working with Grace, El Arbi, and Fallah again, but who knows whether the cast and crew will have the same interest after this incident? What's even sadder is that El Arbi had to receive the news at his wedding and will undoubtedly now have this on his mind throughout the subsequent honeymoon.
No matter the case, having just recently led the hugely popular Ms. Marvel, the directing duo will certainly have a bright future ahead in Hollywood and possibly even at Marvel Studios on Season 2 and any other projects.
