5 Reasons Warner Bros. Should Release 'Batgirl'
The surprising cancellation of the upcoming Batgirl movie starring Leslie Grace has been met with considerable outcry from fandom and the public at large. The film, which was in the final stages of post-production, was set to focus on the titular Barbara Gordon as she fights crime in Gotham City under the watchful eye of her mentor, Batman. With a star-studded cast, a solid pair of directors, and a talented composer, Batgirl was ready to be the next big comic book movie. That was until David Zaslav, chief executive of the newly merged Warner Bros. Discovery, decided to shelve Batgirl due to the money the company would make from the project as a tax write-off rather than as a released film. In response to this decision, the campaign #ReleaseBatgirl has been gaining traction as fans show how much they want to see the film that was such a labor of love from the cast and crew. For this article, I will be going through my top five personal reasons why I and many others would like to see Batgirl be officially released.
5. The Directors
Having gained notoriety from their work on Bad Boys For Life, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah are a pair of Moroccan directors who have a keen eye for action and scale in their films. They have also clearly expressed their passion for the source material and the story they had crafted for the film. Not getting to see what they accomplished for Batgirl would be a shame for them as well as fans of their previous projects.
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4. The Music
Natalie Holt, the composer for Obi-Wan Kenobi and Loki, was originally set to compose the film’s score. Having created numerous memorable and haunting melodies for each series, Holt could compose an extremely unique score for Batgirl unlike anything we’ve heard in DC’s previous outings. In a world where most comic book movies tend to have similarly bombastic orchestral scores, Holt’s particular style could give Batgirl the unique musical flourish her character deserves.
3. The Cast
Batgirl’s cast is packed with well-known actors who would each fit their roles very well. The film’s cast includes Leslie Grace as Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl, JK Simmons as Commissioner James Gordon, Brendan Fraser as Garfield Lynns aka Firefly, and none other than Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne aka Batman. Keaton specifically would be reprising his role as the Dark Knight for the first time since 1992. This could also potentially set the film in the same universe as Tim Burton’s Batman movies.
2. Representation
Being an Afro-Latina actress, Leslie Grace would be the first woman of color to lead a DC film since Halle Berry in Catwoman. Her character would also have support in the form of her friend, played by transgender Asian actress Ivory Aquino, who would be the first trans actress to land a supporting role in a comic book film. In sidelining a movie with such significant representation, Warner Bros. would be alienating large portions of their audience and continuing to avoid any kinds of risks or challenges to the status quo.
1. Barbara Gordon
Barbara Gordon is one of the most important characters in Batman’s mythos. Through both Batgirl and Oracle, she continues to be one of the most important members of the Bat Family and plays a crucial role in their fight against the corruption of Gotham City. Barbara deserves her own film and the time for that film is now.
As fans continue to push for the film’s release and Warner Bros. struggles with their merger and slate of content, Batgirl’s official release may be the best decision in the long run. The world of superhero movies changed with the advent of streaming services and fandom campaigns. So even just a release on HBO Max would be satisfying for me at this point. However this situation turns out in the end, the DC fandom is showing Warner Bros. that it is full of people ready to believe in Batgirl.
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