Birds Of Prey Spinoff Said To Take Place In A Bat-Free Gotham City

The forthcoming Birds of Prey movie won’t feature Batgirl, nor will it make room for Bruce Wayne’s Caped Crusader, either.

We already knew Barbara Gordon/Oracle was expected to sit out Warner’s female team-up movie, but Deadline’s casting scoop from earlier today essentially confirmed that Birds of Prey will take place in a Gotham City devoid of Batman, as Bruce Wayne’s alter-ego is seemingly MIA.

His absence will no doubt leave the stage free and clear for Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) and her costumed allies – namely Huntress and Black Canary, not to mention Renee Montoya and Cassandra Cain – to launch a defense against Black Mask, the twisted and downright sadistic villain set to anchor Birds of Prey in two years’ time.

Word is Warner Bros. executives have earmarked Sharlto Copley and Ewan McGregor (!) as potential candidates for the role – presumably at the expense of Jason Statham – though the studio is yet to announce anything official.

What Deadline’s scoop does tell us, though – you know, beyond the fact that Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Jurnee Smollett-Bell are now on the verge of closing deals for Birds of Prey – is that the 2020 spinoff has ruled Batman out of the equation, which really makes a lot of sense, too, when you consider that Matt Reeves is busy tending to his own interpretation of the Dark Knight.

The end product, simply titled The Batman, has also been tipped for a 2020 release, meaning Birds of Prey won’t be alone on the DC slate. Closer to home, and we still have the triple act of Aquaman, Shazam! and Wonder Woman 1984 to look forward to, all of which are aiming for box office glory in their own right, though it seems Billy Batson has some company…