What seemed to be destined to end up in the graveyards of cinema history, Batgirl has now been confirmed to be getting screenings: but with one depressing condition.
After a controversial announcement saw the death of the project in early Aug. 2022, it seemed like the film was just set to be vaporware of HBO Max and Warner Bros. culling of content. Co-directors Billal Fallah and Adil El Arbi have even said they believed the entire film had been wiped from the archives. But, a new report says that special screenings will go underway.
The Hollywood Reporter has reported the film will be getting “funeral screenings” inside the Warner Bros. studio lots before it is sent to the deepest darkest realms of the studio’s archives, likely never to be seen again. The concept of filming an estimated $80 million film, featuring stars as well known as Michael Keaton and Brendan Fraser, and then to put it aside as part of a tax write-off feels like a Mel Brooks The Producers scenario.
The entire saga around the film has seen increasingly bad publicity for the newly merged Warner Bros. Discovery. Alongside Batgirl’s cancelation has been a slew of animated projects for HBO Max that have now fallen by the wayside. These included a Scooby-Doo project, a Matt Reeves-led Batman animated series, and several Looney Tunes projects.
The decisions have alienated creatives, with long-time comic book writer Dan Slott publicly announcing his boycott of HBO Max. Slott also described the Batman: Caped Crusader series as “epic”, with former Batman: The Animated Series helmsman Bruce Timm pegged to work on the project.