What Happened To The New Canceled Batgirl Film?
Warner Bros. shocked the internet when it made a drastic move to cancel their Batgirl movie. With In The Heights star Leslie Grace in the leading role, the superhero flick was set to be an exclusive HBO MAX film and would introduce the character to audiences.But now, the DC Comics movie, directed by Ms. Marvel’s Bilall Fallah and Adil El Arbi, will never see the light of day. Despite nearly being completed and filmed, the streaming service decided it would be better to cancel the project than see it through to the end.This anticipated film was where Leslie Grace's Batgirl AKA Barbara Gordon made an appearance alongside Michael Keaton, who was set to return as Batman. This shocking revelation is part of a series of cancelations and has left many worried for HBO MAX. So what happened and why was Batgirl canceled?
8 Warner Bros Cancels Batgirl Movie
Warner Bros told The Hollywood Reporter that the decision to shelve Batgirl “reflects [their] leadership’s strategic shift” and that it was “not a reflection of [Leslie Grace’s] performance:”
It has been noted that the studio felt the movie was neither big enough to feel worthy of a major theatrical release nor small enough to make the streaming service a profit.
7 Who Was In The Canceled Batgirl Movie?
The film had a $75 million budget that grew to $90 million due to COVID-related overages. Directed Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, the film had finished shooting and was going through the post-production service.
It was set to star Leslie Grace, who had already given interviews where she seemed excited about the project. Michael Keaton was set to make his return as Batman, with JK Simmons starring as her father Commissioner Gordon. Brendan Fraser was set to step up as the villain, Firefly.
6 What Went Wrong With HBO Max's Batgirl Release?
According to Deadline, the main reason the movie was shelved was due to Warner Bros Discovery boss David Zaslav's rejection of previous WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar's business strategy. It had a strong emphasis on building streaming subscriptions for HBO Max through original content.
This included the controversial decision to release Warner Bros' entire 2021 theatrical slate including Dune, Godzilla Vs Kong, King Richard and The Matrix Resurrections on HBO MAX instead of making them cinema exclusive.
It looks like Zaslav wants to concentrate on big screen releases, yet Batgirl was not considered big enough to have a theatrical release. The extra money it would cost to make Batgirl cinema ready could double the budget.
5 Was A Tax Loophole The Reason For Canceling Batgirl?
The merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery has been expensive, with the media conglomerate taking on heavy debt to make the deal happen. This means they have been forced to tighten their belts and find cost-saving measures where possible.
The decision to scrap Batgirl and Scoob, both almost completed movies appears to be an accounting loophole. It looks like the media giants can scrap these movies without having to carry the losses on its books. As a company that has recently changed hands, they apparently had until mid-August the exercise this option.
Because it is being used as a tax-write off, we will never be able to see it. There is now no way for HBO MAX to release the comic book movie.
4 How Batgirl Filmmakers Found Out About Warner Bros Canceling The Movie
The Batgirl directors weren't given too much warning about this cancelation before we all learned about it. Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah were both in Morocco for El Arbi’s wedding, and the two “expected to return to the cutting room and continue work on the film:”
“We still can’t believe it,” wrote the pair about the cancellation, whose previous credits include Bad Boys for Life. “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.”
3 Why Was Batgirl Scrapped?
Deadline noted that “the film tested once, and the result wasn’t that bad,” even when audiences were shown a cut that included temporary visual effects. Word from people at that screening was a little different!
On his podcast The Town, Hollywood insider Belloni revealed details about Batgirl's test screenings. He claimed that test audience members felt that the film was more like a TV pilot and not big enough for theatrical release. There were also mentions of Dark Phoenix, a 2019 X-Men movie that went on to be one of the biggest box office flops of all time.
The Hollywood Reporter has a different story, saying it received a test rating of 60, which is positive. This has left people wondering who was telling the truth about the situation.
2 How Leslie Grace Reacted To News Of Batgirl Cancelation
Twenty-seven-year-old Leslie Grace took to all social media platforms to thank fans after her Batgirl movie is scrapped.
“Querida familia! On the heels of the recent news about our movie Batgirl, I am proud of the love, hard work and intention all of our incredible cast and tireless crew put into this film over 7 months in Scotland,” Grace wrote on Instagram.
Grace accompanied her post with a never seen behind-the-scenes video from the movie, showing her singing along to I Will Always Love You while getting into the costume.
“There’s crazy stunts, crazy drops,” Grace told Variety in April. “She’s a biker chick, so you’re going to see her do a bunch of bada**ery … There were a lot of long days, but it was so worth it.” There was even talks of a sequel or using her character in other DCEU movies.
1 Are HBO Shows Safe?
After the scrapping of Batgirl, many people are concerned about their favorite HBO Max show, which includes Hacks, the Gossip Girl reboot and Peacemaker.
Reportedly, Warner Bros is about to cut 70 percent of the production staff at HBO Max to fold up HBO, HBO Max and Discovery Plus into one streaming service. Many believe this means that the losses will be in the original script department.
David Zaslav says HBO Max shows will not be shut down anytime soon. It is believed shows are safe for the next year, 2023 could be a cancelation bloodbath. He has said there will be a 10-year plan for DC going forward, similar to Kevin Feige’s MCU strategy. It does look like HBO Max and Discover +.
Sadly, it does appear that many shows and movies have already been removed by the streamer.
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