The Batgirl movie is officially shelved, and will apparently never see the light of day on any platform according to reports. This despite the studio having spent $90 million on the flick, which was intended to debut on HBO Max.
It’s being reported that Batgirl is done done. It’s not getting a theatrical release or a streaming release.
It’s speculated that The Flash, starring highly troubled actor Ezra Miller, may also be on the chopping block.
New Warner Bros Discovery boss David Zaslav continues to make brutal cuts to the company, with DC Comics and films being a concern for him. Zaslav’s goal is to find someone to ‘overhaul’ DC and turn it into a legit competitor to Disney’s Marvel Studios. Possibly to this end, Zaslav secured former Disney exec Alan Horn as a consultant.
Here’s more from Variety…
The production — starring Leslie Grace as Barbara Gordon (aka Batgirl) and directed by “Bad Boys for Life” and “Ms. Marvel” filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah — was greenlit in 2021 as part of a company-wide effort at Warner Bros. to create feature films specifically for HBO Max. But the new corporate regime at Warner Bros. Discovery has pivoted the company’s priorities back to theatrical features, leaving “Batgirl” without a proper home.
The Hollywood press is struggling to make sense of the decision to simply bury the movie. It really is almost unheard of. Batgirl joins the ranks of such infamous buried movies like The Day the Clown Cried and Roger Corman’s low-budget Fantastic Four flick.
The decision still comes as a shock, as studios almost never shelve productions outright, preferring to get at least some return on their investment. It also comes as Warner Bros. is still contending with what to do about “The Flash,” a DC adaptation created — and budgeted — specifically for theatrical release in 2023. The film has been utterly hamstrung by repeated allegations of abuse and misconduct by its star, Ezra Miller.
Twitter isn’t happy, believing that Warner chose to axe Batgirl and keep The Flash. But that might not be the case.
Yes, it would appear that The Flash is also on the chopping block, as Ezra Miller keeps dragging Warner Bros. into PR nightmares at a lightning fast pace. This after the Ray Fisher debacle that saw him ousted from the film in 2021.
(I mean, really, does anybody even want to see more of Miller’s weird ass “running” for two hours? People would go to see Michael Keaton as Batman again. That’s it. Be honest.)
Why Was ‘Batgirl’ REALLY Cancelled?
Again, the official reason that most outlets are giving is that HBO Max ‘made for TV’ movies aren’t a priority. It was simply a business decision that aligned with David Zaslav’s plan for DC Comics movies going forward.
However, there’s another rumor. And that rumor is that the movie is bad. Really, really bad. And it did poorly with test audiences.
Those tests were said to be so poorly received by moviegoers that the studio decided to cut its losses and run, for the sake of the brand’s future. It’s a DC disaster.
“They think an unspeakable ‘Batgirl’ is going to be irredeemable,” the source said.
Oof. Maybe the similarities to Roger Corman’s Fantastic Four don’t end with both movies being shelved?
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