The Batgirl directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah opened up about their feelings about their movie being canceled with the most genuine reaction to The Flash movie.
The directors of the canceled Batgirl movie, Adil El Arbi, and Bilall Fallah, have something to say about their movie being canceled. They’re not just slightly disappointed about it – they’re really feeling the weight of “unfinished business,” especially after watching The Flash.
Let’s rewind a bit. Batgirl was filmed, shot, and was just about ready to bless our homes as a Max exclusive, but Warner Bros. Discovery decided to go back on their plans for the home release and focus only on theatrical releases. Instead of honoring all the hard work done and making it a theatrical release instead, Warner Bros. decided to shelf Batgirl. Poof – all those hours of filming, makeup, script writing – all gone like a magic trick, but one that no one is applauding.
In the world of budgets and bottom lines, the $90 million Batgirl movie was basically used as a tax write-off while Warner Bros. Discovery scrambled to balance their checkbooks. However, Peter Safran, co-head of DC Studios, justified the move by saying that after looking over all the details and what had been put into post-production, releasing the movie “would have hurt DC.”
You mean, more than these poorly-received titles DC has released lately? Interesting.
Marc Malkin's (@marcmalkin) sitdown with Leslie Grace (@lesliegrace) is eye-opening.
— Clayton Davis (@ByClaytonDavis) February 13, 2023
Throwback piece I wrote on that bad week for #Latinos
How ‘Batgirl’ Axing and James Franco’s Castro Casting Highlight Hollywood’s Persistent Erasure of Latinos https://t.co/zlO8Rhpurm @variety https://t.co/wPXClE7Alv
Batgirl producers react to The Flash
The Flash sped right past controversy to secure a June 2023 release. Despite headliner Ezra Miller being caught in a web of investigations and allegations, the movie still saw a theatrical release despite its terrible performance at the box office. But after watching The Flash, Adil and Bilall felt more than just a tinge of sadness – they felt left out.
"“We watched [The Flash] and we were sad… we felt we could have been part of the whole thing,”"
Both directors think that the audience should be the ultimate judge of a movie’s worth, and Batgirl never got her day in court.
“Our movie was very different than The Flash,” Arbi pointed out. While The Flash leans heavily into the fantasy element like fancy time traveling, Batgirl was much more like a Tim Burton Batman movie. But what really stung the most for both Adil and Fallah was seeing Michael Keaton reprise his Batman role in The Flash, a storyline they intended to continue in Batgirl. Along with Keaton, it would have been amazing to see Brendan Fraser star as The Fly, J.K. Simmons would be playing Commissioner Gordon, and Leslie Grace in the leading role as Batgirl.
Knowing the cast would have been this solid doesn’t just hurt the directors – it kind of makes us cry on the inside a little as well.
"“It’s the biggest disappointment of our careers,” Adil revealed. “There’s still a feeling of unfinished business,” Bilall added."
The phrase “unfinished business” sticks out here like a Bat-Signal in the Gotham night. It makes you wonder: Is the Batgirl story over, or is it just waiting for the right moment to sweep down and surprise us all? Maybe, just maybe, with enough noise and complaints from would-have-been audiences could be enough to revive the project with the same cast, as long as they’re still interested in starring in it. Who knows for sure.
For now, all we can say is that the directors rightfully feel a sense of loss and being left out, and we feel that for them as well. But who knows? In the ever-changing and non-linear world of movie-making and superhero comebacks, Batgirl may yet have her moment to shine. Until then, the “unfinished business” hangs in the air, a tale of what might have been, and we as viewers feel for the entire cast and crew of Batgirl and agree.