‘Batgirl’ Movie Will Not Be Released, Despite Already Being Filmed

Warner Bros. Discovery has reportedly decided not to release Batgirl, a DC Comics film intended for release directly to HBO Max. The move is unprecedented since the studio reportedly spent at least $70 million to make it and it’s already been filmed. There were even test screenings for the movie, which was directed by Bad Boys For Life team Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. In The Heights star Leslie Grace played the title character.

Batgirl was completely “shelved” by Warner Bros., a source told the New York Post. The test screenings were reportedly so bad that Warner Bros. decided it was better to never release the movie than risk it damaging the DC Comics brand as a film franchise. “They think an unspeakable Batgirl is going to be irredeemable,” the source said.

The movie was never designed to see a theatrical release and Warner Bros. hoped to make it a mid-budget movie. However, the budget kept climbing to $90 million, according to The Wrap, because of COVID safety concerns and shutdowns. (The Post‘s source said the budget reached over $100 million.) Most of the movie was filmed in Scotland between November 2021 and March. Michael Keaton played Bruce Wayne/Batman after finishing his work on The Flash movie, while J.K. Simmons reprised his Justice League role as Commissioner Jim Gordon. Warner Bros. has not commented on the situation.

There were some signs that something was going wrong with Batgirl. Warner Bros. never mentioned the project once during DC’s San Diego Comic-Con panel last month. The Puck also reported in April that Warner Bros.’ chief Toby Emmerich considered a theatrical release for Batgirl after all, but Emmerich left after the Warner Bros. Discovery merger was completed. Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy then took over the studio.

Warner Discovery CEO David Zaslav also recently told employees he plans to re-structure Warner Bros. into three units, including a “DC-Based Film Production” unit, reports Variety. Sources told The Wrap that Zaslav is “committed” to making all DC titles major theatrical events and Batgirl does not fit the bill. So, it seems like the movie was too expensive to be a streaming exclusive, but not expensive enough to reach theaters. Insiders told The Wrap the studio likes the star and filmmakers and hopes to work with them again.

Batgirl wasn’t the only DC movie being produced exclusively for HBO Max. A film about the obscure Wonder Twins characters was in the works, but Zaslav reportedly balked at the $75 million pricetag for a streaming movie guaranteed to have a limited audience. K.J. Aba (Riverdale) and Isabel May (1883) were already cast as the title characters. There is also a Blue Beetle movie, which recently finished filming. Blue Beetle was also not mentioned during the SDCC panel.