Warner Bros. Shelves ‘Batgirl’ after Spending $90 Million

Brendan Fraser fans are not happy about the decision to abandon ‘Batgirl’

Warner Bros. announced this week that the Batgirl film, which was set to bring the DC Comics character to the big screen, has been canceled. This comes after filming wrapped and the studio was said to have spent $90 million on its production. The worst part? Brendan Fraser’s big screen comeback as the villainous Firefly dies with it.

Batgirl, which was slated for release on HBO Max this year, would have also featured rising star Leslie Grace (In the Heights) in the title role and Michael Keaton reprising his role as Batman. “The decision to not release ‘Batgirl’ reflects our leadership’s strategic shift as it relates to the DC universe and HBO Max,” a Warner Bros. spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday.

The original intent of Batgirl when it was announced in 2021 was to provide new superhero content for the HBO Max streaming service. Now, with WarnerMedia’s merger with Discovery Inc, apparently its DC superheroes are only good enough if they star in blockbusters specifically on the big screen, a head-scratcher given the popularity of streaming services and low theater attendance. Batgirl, it seems, was not worthy.

Brendan Fraser fans who have been waiting patiently to see his return to movies are less than thrilled:

A movie featuring a Latina Batgirl, a trans character & actress, Brendan Fraser’s comeback & Michael Keaton has been cancelled.. just wow.

Congratulations David Zaslav, you officially killed the DC Extended Universe. #RELEASETHEBATGIRLMOVIE

— black canary updates 🎙️ (@BlackCanaryNews) August 2, 2022

If it wasn't cancelled, Batgirl would have been:
-One of the first, if not the first, superhero movies with a latina actress as the lead
-One of the first superhero movies with a trans person playing a trans person
-BRENDAN FRASER'S RETURN TO THE BIG SCREEN!

— Toganium (@toganium) August 3, 2022

With #Batgirl now dead, we need to give the beloved Brendan Fraser another chance in Gotham in @mattreevesLA 's Batverse.

Who would you want to see him as? pic.twitter.com/FkUjXHkonW

— The Big Bat Theory #DROPHEAD🩸👁️ (@BigBatTheory) August 2, 2022

Leslie Grace, Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah, Michael Keaton, Brendan Fraser, Ivory Aquino, Jacob Scipio and the entire BATGIRL Crew did not deserve this.

Their hard work deserves to be seen 🦇#ReleaseBatgirl

— Batgirl Film News (@BatgirlFilm) August 2, 2022

If the rumors about Batgirl’s cancelled release are true, there is absolutely no excuse for that.

Leslie Grace deserves better. Brendan Fraser deserves better. Michael Keaton deserves better. The fans deserve better.

Batgirl deserves better! pic.twitter.com/9YL8xtyXrN

— Michael Patterson (@michaelp93) August 2, 2022

Everything I've heard about Batgirl makes me feel so sorry for the entire team behind it. Also from my Cliffie, I would give everything to see Brendan Fraser as Firefly😢 pic.twitter.com/hFdmJBVsD1

— Doom Patrol Shots (@DoomPatrolShots) August 2, 2022

So allegedly Warner Bros have cancelled Batgirl. A film in which Brendan Fraser, a great actor who was blacklisted for speaking out about sexual assault, was in the process of making his comeback. Yet Aquaman 2: The Abuser Returns is still going ahead. Seems fair right?

— Verity (@EveMadLex) August 2, 2022

Brendan Fraser wasn’t new to the universe, having worked with Warner Bros. in the past in the HBO Max series Doom Patrol, but fans were ready to see him take on the role of pyromaniac Firefly in this latest film.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CgzisvCMwmk/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=e09ec588-414e-47b3-bac8-48d10489894e

“We are saddened and shocked by the news. We still can’t believe it,” Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah said in a statement Wednesday. “As directors, it is critical that our work be shown to audiences, and while the film was far from finished, we wish that fans all over the world would have had the opportunity to see and embrace the final film themselves. Maybe one day they will insha’Allah (if God wills).”

The directors said it was a “privilege and an honor” to work on the film, “even if it was for a brief moment,” signing their statement, “Batgirl For Life.”