Batgirl (2022) (1 Viewer)

[Josh Steinberg]

I wonder if he left voluntarily as the article seems to spin it or if he was forced out. Between his failure to save Justice League (which I don't think was entirely his fault) and the revelations surrounding his personal life that came out fairly recently, I wonder if the studio felt they could do better with another filmmaker who wasn't carrying that baggage.

 

[Jake Lipson]

I'm not sure if I believe this was ever a movie that Whedon was actually going to make.

We know that Whedon was brought onto Justice League earlier than the press reports that he was in were made public. I've read elsewhere, lately, that Snyder was essentially removed from the project before his unfortunate personal tragedy. (I don't have the link for this offhand, though.)

Given the timing of this announcement last March, I wonder if Batgirl wasn't a cover for Whedon taking over Justice League. "We're hiring Joss Whedon to direct Batgirl" sounds like a much more effective PR line than "We're firing Zack Snyder and bringing in Joss Whedon to fix his unwatchable movie."

Then, things obviously escalated beyond the point where it could be hidden, which is when Snyder made the choice to go pubic with the death o his daughter, which really isn't any of our business, but he believe that people would see the movie as being in trouble if he didn't disclose that information.

And now that Justice League is over, and we all know it ended up in trouble with a really bad gross, there's no reason to continue this Batgirl charade.

I think WB needs to cool it with the Batman spinoffs until Matt Reeves figures out what he's doing for the main Batman series, and let that dictate what comes next. Also, we've had three films featuring Batman and Batman villains in the last two years, four if you count The Lego Batman Movie. None of the live-action ones were particularly well-received. I think it's essential that Reeves be allowed to take his time with his film, not only so that he can make it the best he can, but also because the audience needs there to be a break. They need to miss Batman before he comes back. This will be a hard thing for WB to accept because it means leaving a monymaker on the table for a few years, but if they rush out another one right away, the general mainstream moviegoing audience will feel like, "Wait, another one already?" when they should feel like "Yay! Another one, finally!"

I think it should be at least 2022 before we see another Batman film, ESPECIALLY if Reeves reboots it and it's not connected to current continuity.

Whether WB will wait that long is an open question -- probably not -- but putting the character on hiatus can only make the heart grow fonder at this point. Right now, they're approaching a saturation level, and not even with films that have been well-received. It will be better for the long-term health of the franchise if they cool it for a bit in order to make us yearn for his return.

 

[Sam Favate]

A shame. I would have liked to see what Whedon would do with the character. Now she'll probably just be another dark, disturbed character in the DCMU.

 

[TravisR]

I wonder if he left voluntarily as the article seems to spin it or if he was forced out. Between his failure to save Justice League (which I don't think was entirely his fault) and the revelations surrounding his personal life that came out fairly recently, I wonder if the studio felt they could do better with another filmmaker who wasn't carrying that baggage.

Last night, Whedon liked this Tweet: https://twitter.com/MarkHarrisNYC/status/966775578924810240

Now, it's kinda crazy to read that much into a like of a non-controversial Tweet but I look at it as why would he have bothered to even press the like button on it if it wasn't true.

 

[Bob_S.]

I know I'll probably never see it but I've been wanting a Cassandra Cain movie for years. She's the one that got me back into reading DC comics again. I came across her Batgirl comics while in the local library one day and I just fell in love with her. She was brought up and trained as an assassin by her father David Cain. Never learning to speak, she was a able to anticipate an opponent's move before they made it. She could really kick ass and almost beat Batman. She eventually learns to speak but she loses her fighting edge due to that, so she seeks out her mother, Lady Shiva to help her get her fighting skills back. I'd highly recommend the comic. But like I said, I'll probably never see a movie or tv series about her.

Oh, and she's Asian, so diversity-check.

 

[Jake Lipson]

Now she'll probably just be another dark, disturbed character in the DCMU.

This project was announced when Whedon was brought onto it. I think I read somewhere that Whedon pitched it to WB. If we believe that this was a thing that was ever going to happen -- which like I said, I'm not sure -- but, for sake of argument: if Whedon brought it to them and Whedon then exits, and it wasn't an idea they were perusing before Whedon came to them, then maybe they're just going to drop the project altogeher? I mean, I know that they have Batgirl in their library and they can use her whenever they want, and sooner or later she'll probably appear in a film. But maybe they don't jump on that right away and consider this iteration of it to be dead.

 

[Bryan^H]

https://batman-news.com/2018/02/23/zack-snyder-likes-post-joss-whedons-batgirl-exit/

Not a Whedon fan I take it?

 

[Jeff Cooper]

Perhaps the real reason is that Alicia Silverstone was not available?

 

[JimmyO]

Perhaps the real reason is that Alicia Silverstone was not available?

Not possible.

 

[Carabimero]

That's a shame because I liked what I assume to be the things that Whedon added to Justice League and because I want to see a new Whedon movie.

Yes, it's too bad, but also in a way it's refreshing. Too many times the writer doesn't have a story and either doesn't realize it or keeps quiet, sticking with the movie until it sinks at the box office because, well, it didn't have a story.

 

[TravisR]

Yes, it's too bad, but also in a way it's refreshing. Too many times the writer doesn't have a story and either doesn't realize it or keeps quiet, sticking with the movie until it sinks at the box office because, well, it didn't have a story.

Yeah, if it isn't working, it's better for everyone that Whedon walks away and lets someone else with a good idea take a crack at it.

 

[Sam Favate]

Yeah, if it isn't working, it's better for everyone that Whedon walks away and lets someone else with a good idea take a crack at it.

That's very true. Look how it turned out for Wonder Woman. Whedon was attached to that way back when. It took 10 years or so, but it got made, and the vast majority of viewers were happy with it (including me!).

 

[Sam Favate]

Karen Gillan Would Like to be Batgirl (and Direct it)

http://dceumythic.com/2020/01/17/karen-gillan-would-like-to-be-batgirl-and-direct-it/

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Karen Gillan Would Like to be Batgirl (and Direct it)

http://dceumythic.com/2020/01/17/karen-gillan-would-like-to-be-batgirl-and-direct-it/

I would watch the fuck out of that movie.

 

[Jake Lipson]

WB is now making Batgirl as an exclusive for HBO Max, and its star is Leslie Grace.

‘In the Heights’ Star Leslie Grace to Play Batgirl in HBO Max Movie

'In the Heights' star Leslie Grace has officially been cast as Barbara Gordon in 'Batgirl,' the upcoming HBO Max superhero film.

variety.com

If you haven't heard of her, go watch In the Heights, in which she was so sensational as Nina.

I suggest that the thread title be edited to remove Joss Whedon's name as he is no longer attached to the project. The film will now be directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. They previously made the #1 film in North America of 2020, Bad Boys for Life. (Boy, that was a weird sentence to type.)

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Interesting casting, given that Barbara Gordon has had such a specific look for the past half-century. I wonder if this is in continuity with the Matt Reeves Batman.

 

[Jake Lipson]

I wonder if this is in continuity with the Matt Reeves Batman.

That's a good question. That probably depends on how much control Reeves was given in being the architect of his universe.

If this is indeed a spinoff of that, I can't imagine they would go with an HBO Max release as opposed to theatrical.

 

[Sam Favate]

Not sure I would count on it being related to the Reeves Batman. DC and Warner haven't seemed very concerned about creating a cohesive universe. Indeed, their concept of a shared universe seems to be a "multiverse" in which all iterations of the same characters co-exist somehow.

Already we have seen the show Gotham, which presents a young Bruce Wayne, the show Batwoman, which shows Gotham after Bruce Wayne has left it behind, the show The Titans, which shows an aged Bruce Wayne (and the third season of which takes place in Gotham and casts Savannah Welch as Barbara Gordon), and so on. And none of them exist on the same world. It's a lazy approach to creating a shared universe.

(Let's hope Marvel fares better with the concept.)

 

[Bryan^H]

Interesting casting, given that Barbara Gordon has had such a specific look for the past half-century. I wonder if this is in continuity with the Matt Reeves Batman.

I doubt it. Very much.

 

[BobO'Link]

Interesting casting, given that Barbara Gordon has had such a specific look for the past half-century. I wonder if this is in continuity with the Matt Reeves Batman.

Exactly... Here are the actresses who were in contention:

Haley Lu Richardson

Isabela Merced

Zoey Deutch

Leslie Grace

Of those 4, Zoey Deutch looks the role based on the comics and is pretty much how I picture Barbara Gordon/Batgirl and her hair color/length/style works without resorting to wigs (not that that makes a difference but it is what it is). But we all know what's in the comics is constantly being rewritten/changed for no reason than to appease the "woke" crowd because comics being what they are...

Leslie Grace has a *single* credit before this casting in what should be a major film.

And it's being directed by a pair of rather inexperienced directors plus written by Christina Hodson who wrote Birds of Prey (IMHO a horrible film), Bumblebee (haven't seen it but it has poor ratings), and a couple of other forgettable entries.

So far the announced crew and cast don't give me much hope. I'll be waiting for reviews...