Warner Bros. Shelves Completed ”Batgirl” Film

Leslie Grace at the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival
Leslie Grace at the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival "In The Heights" special preview screening in 2021. Photo by John Salangsang/LALIFF/Shutterstock (12012596cq)

It looks as though Batgirl is set to remain in the shadows…

Back in 2021, Warner Bros. decided to create a number of feature films specifically for HBO Max. Amongst those greenlit for the streaming network was Batgirl. The film would be based on the DC Comics character, Barbara Gordon, who is the daughter of Gotham City’s police commissioner and moonlights as a vigilante. 

Leslie Grace of In The Heights had been cast in the titular role with Spider-Man: No Way Home star J.K. Simmons playing Commissioner James Gordon, Doom Patrol actor Brendan Fraser as Firefly, and Morbius star Michael Keaton appearing as Batman. 

Filming took place in Scotland between November 2021 and March 2022 with Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah of Bad Boys fame helming the project. 

Despite the movie being complete, Warner Bros. has decided not to release it on HBO Max or, in fact, anywhere at all. The decision is reportedly due to the company’s desire for DC films to rather be theatrical blockbusters. As Batgirl was budgeted to screen in homes on HBO Max, and not for a major global release in theaters, the $90 million production has effectively been killed. 

The Scooby-Doo adaptation, Scoob!: Holiday Haunt, which would have served as a sequel to the 2020 film, Scoob!, has also been shelved by the studio.