‘Batgirl’, the feature film adaptation of the DC Comics character, was killed off at Warner Bros., The New York Post reported Wednesday.
It will not be released in theaters or on any studio platform, including HBO Max.
The production cast Leslie Grace as Barbara Gordon (aka Batgirl) and was directed by “Bad Boys for Life” and “Marvel filmmakers Ms. Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah.
The project was greenlit in 2021 as part of a company-wide effort at Warner Bros. to create feature films specifically for HBO Max.
According to reports, the film cost around $70 million to make, while some suggest it was over $100 million. It was doing test screenings for audiences ahead of its late 2022 debut, and would have made it one of the most expensive cinematic scum of all time.
These tests were said to have been so poor that the studio decided to abandon production altogether, in order to preserve the integrity of the brand.
Studio insiders, however, insist that the decision to scrap “Batgirl” was not driven by the quality of the film or the commitment of the filmmakers, but by the desire that the studio’s slate of DC features either on a blockbuster scale, the report added. .
“Batgirl” was budgeted to hit homes on HBO Max, not for a major worldwide theatrical release. The initial $75 million production budget for the project, which wrapped principal photography earlier this year and was in post-production, has reached $90 million, in part due to COVID-related delays and protocols. .
The decision to put the project on hold entirely is still a shock, as the studios prefer to get at least some return on investment. It also comes as Warner Bros. still deciding what to do about “The Flash,” a DC adaptation created — and budgeted — specifically for a 2023 theatrical release.
The film has been plagued with repeated allegations of abuse and misconduct by its star, Ezra Miller.
Along with Grace, JK Simmons plays Barbara’s father, Commissioner Jim Gordon, and Michael Keaton reprises his role as Batman. Brendan Fraser was cast as the villain, Firefly and Grace said Variety Magazine in April that she had preliminary discussions with El Arbi and Fallah about what a sequel “could be”.
“There are crazy stunts, crazy drops,” Grace said of the film. “She’s a biker, so you’re going to see her doing a lot of badassery…It was a lot of long days, but it was so worth it,” reported Variety Magazine.
“Scoob!: Holiday Haunt,” a sequel to the 2020 film “Scoob!”.
Footage from the animated adaptation of the “Scooby-Doo” series premiered in a sizzle reel for HBO Max in December 2021. According to reports, production cost Warner Bros. $40 million.
