‘Batgirl’ Movie Axed Despite $90M Price Tag – CNET [CNET]

Gotham’s other nighttime crusader won’t see the light of day.

Warner Bros. Discovery will not be releasing Batgirl in theaters or on its streaming platform, HBO Max. The DC live-action flick features Leslie Grace in the lead role as the superhero/Barbara Gordon, and included appearances from Michael Keaton as Batman and J.K. Simmons as Commissioner James Gordon. 

According to reports from The Hollywood Reporter, production costs exceeded the original budget of roughly $80 million due to COVID-related measures, sending the price tag to nearly $90 million. The film, directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, reportedly finished shooting and was expected to debut on HBO Max this year. Batgirl has been in the works since 2017, with Grace’s casting announced in 2021. Per THR, Warner Bros.’ decision to cancel the movie is a result of the studio wanting to invest big dollars in DC blockbusters versus streaming releases. Under David Zaslav’s new leadership as CEO, the company is focused on streamlining and cutbacks across the board following the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery.   

The move has some DC fans wondering about the status of another upcoming DCEU adaptation: The Flash. Ezra Miller stars as the titular character, during the past few months, the actor’s faced allegations of assault and kidnapping and has been arrested twice. The film has a planned theatrical release for 2023, but it’s unclear whether controversy surrounding Miller will affect WarnerMedia’s decision to move forward.

However, Batgirl was not the only HBO Max on the chopping block, as the studio also decided to cut Scoob!: Holiday Haunt, the sequel to Scoob! Though Batgirl is out of the running, DC’s future film releases include Aquaman 2, Black Adam and Shazam! Fury of the Gods.