The movie Batgirl, starring Leslie Grace, will not be released on HBO Max as planned and will not be in theaters either. A surprising decision by Warner Bros. Discovery as the movie about the heroine was in post-production.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the group explains that this cancellation “reflects the strategic shift in our leadership regarding the DC Universe and HBO Max”. Warner Bros. had planned to develop several movies specifically for its HBO Max streaming platform, but this strategic choice was not validated by the new management following the merger with Discovery.
According to Variety, the Batgirl movie was considered too expensive to be profitable in streaming and not spectacular enough to deserve a theatrical release. A theatrical release would have required an additional budget for its marketing. Unthinkable according to Variety’s sources, while Warner Bros. Discovery is trying to save money.
Leslie Grace and the directors react to the cancellation
In a joint statement posted on Instagram, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, the directors of Batgirl, said they were “saddened and shocked by the news.” They added, “We still can’t believe it. 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.”
In the rest of the release, they also made a point of paying tribute to the film’s crew, “Our amazing cast and crew did a tremendous job and worked so hard to bring Batgirl to life. We are forever grateful to have been part of that team. It was a dream to work with such fantastic actors like Michael Keaton, JK Simmons, Brendan Fraser, Jacob Scipio, Corey Johnson, Rebecca Front and especially the great Leslie Grace, who portrayed Batgirl with so much passion, dedication and humanity.”
Leslie Grace also reacted to the cancellation on Instagram saying she was “proud of the love, hard work and intention all of our incredible cast and tireless crew put into this film over seven months in Scotland.” She adds, “I feel blessed to have worked among absolute greats and forges relationships for a lifetime in the process! To every Batgirl fan – THANK YOU for the love and belief, allowing me to take on the cape and become, as Babs said best, “my own damn hero”!”
Brendan Fraser 
Batgirl (2022) 
