No longer is Warner’s Suicide Squad spinoff known as Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn).
In the name of search engine optimization, the Powers That Be over at Warner Bros. made the decision to roll out a new, truncated title – Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey, to be specific – so that budding comic book movie fans can “find it more quickly.”
Or so says Birds of Prey producer (and former Warner Bros. executive) Sue Kroll, who told Vanity Fair that the surprise rebranding is “simply a display change for exhibition [purposes].” Word is Warner Bros. distributors put forward Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey as a suggestion, all in the hope of boosting SEO and getting the Suicide Squad spinoff in front of as many eyes as possible.
Because, let’s face it, who has time to Google for Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)?
Whether this apparent concern was the reason behind Birds of Prey‘s box office struggles is still up for debate. The film, which fared well with critics, notched only $33.5 million at the domestic box office during its opening weekend – a far cry from the $135.1 million collected by Suicide Squad across the same period back in 2016.
It makes for difficult reading, given Warner Bros. doubled down on Birds of Prey and its R rating (another factor that likely sunk any chance of box office success). Whatever the case, it’s unlikely we’ll see Margot Robbie back as Harley Quinn anytime soon. Which is a shame, really.
Now known as Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey, Cathy Yan’s quasi-sequel to Suicide Squad is playing in theaters worldwide, though it’s proving to be a costly misfire for Warner Bros.
