Batgirl

Michael Keaton reprised his role as Batman in the film, whose budget ballooned amid expensive reshoots.

Production was delayed because of Covid-19 and expensive reshoots were carried out, causing the film’s budget to skyrocket, according to The Wrap. Leslie Grace is best known for her role as Nina in In The Heights. Batgirl also starred Michael Keaton, who was set to reprise his role as Batman in the film, as well as J.K. Simmons and Brendan Frasier. It was directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, who are known for Mrs. Marvel. It’s unusual for studios to completely scrap projects. Starring Leslie Grace in the iconic comic book role, the movie had performed poorly in test screenings, according to the New York Post, which first broke the news of the cancellation.

Following a regime change in Warner Bros, plans to release the forthcoming DC movie Batgirl have been axed, causing the completed film — which starred In ...

First announced in 2017, the film initially had Avengers director Joss Whedon attached to direct before exiting in 2018. This, the reports indicate, is where the film was doomed, testing poorly during a time where new Warner Bros. leadership is looking to rebuild DC’s theatrical brand. However, new Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav has major plans to overhaul the entire company’s film output, and regime changes often mean many once-sure bets get discarded in sometimes surprising ways.

Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. halted work on its new “Batgirl” superhero movie despite having already filmed the picture, according to multiple reports from ...

The movie, based on DC Comics characters, was in the final stages of editing. Warner Bros. didn’t respond to requests for comment. It won’t be released in theaters or on the company’s HBO Max streaming service, Variety and Deadline reported Tuesday. Variety said the film cost $90 million to make.

Warner Bros confirms film starring Leslie Grace as Barbara Gordon, Michael Keaton, JK Simmons and Brendan Fraser won't ever be released.

Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav, who recently oversaw swingeing cuts at CNN including shutting down its $300m streaming service CNN+ one month after it launched, is reportedly prioritising cost-cutting and refocusing the studio on theatrical films over streaming projects. The Hollywood Reporter said Batgirl’s budget was a factor in the decision, having risen to nearly $90m (£74.1m, A$130m) due to costs relating to it being shot during the Covid-19 pandemic. Several shows including Full Frontal With Samantha Bee, The Last OG and Chad have been cancelled since the Warner Bros Discovery merger, while a DC Comics film of The Wonder Twins that was in development has also been canned.

The Dish: What's Behind The 'Batgirl' & 'Scoob!' Discard? David Zaslav's Abject Rejection Of Jason Kilar's HBO Max Strategy.

Warner Bros Discovery just released this statement: “The decision to not release Batgirl reflects our leadership’s strategic shift as it relates to the DC universe and HBO Max. Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actor and this decision is not a reflection of her performance. But as all Warner Bros Discovery braces for Thursday’s quarterly earnings report and the layoffs that are sure to come, no one with a project made specifically for HBO Max or execs there can feel confident at this moment. Rather than spend vast sums pumping up the budgets of each film to compete in theatrical marketplace, and then spend $80 million in global P&A, the studio felt that scrapping both of the movies was a better choice, when coupled with the purchase accounting maneuver. This opportunity expires in mid-August, said sources, and it allows Warner Bros Discovery to not have to carry the losses on its books at a time when the studio is trying to pare down $3 billion in debt across its divisions. The makers of the live action Batgirl and the animated Scoob! learned today that those films were being stopped in their tracks. There are several threads here, but the move amounts to an emphatic rejection of past WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar’s strategy to make original $70 million live action and animated films directly for streaming site HBO Max.

Warner Bros is not the first studio to bury a film six feet deep. Here are a few more of the worst movies you'll never see.

In 2018 it was announced that Michael Flatley – yes, that Michael Flatley, Lord of the Dance Michael Flatley – had written, directed, financed and starred in a globetrotting spy thriller called Blackbird. Not much was known about the film, other than that most of it seemed to feature Flatley wearing a fedora and gazing into the middle distance. The film was shot in two weeks in 2014, and starred Michael Madsen. A trailer was released, and yet the film itself never made it to television. By all reports a terrible film, Empires of the Deep failed to find distribution in 2014, and a 2016 crowdfunding campaign failed to help get it on to screens. But if this really is it – if Batgirl really is destined to be locked in a vault unseen until the end of time – then at least it finds itself in decent company. A $130m underwater 3D fantasy starring Olga Kurylenko as the queen of the mermaids sounds like the best film of 2011. Until this week, it was hard to look upon the imminent Batgirl movie with anything but a wearied sigh.

A truly bizarre situation unfolded in Hollywood yesterday as an avalanche of sites began to report that Warner Bros. would not be releasing its upcoming ...

But that can only happen if you do not monetize the movie at all, no release in theaters, nor on HBO Max, and it cannot be sold do a different studio either. All of this seems like a part of WB’s grand plan to rework the DC universe under new management, given how fractured its become and how troubled many of its projects are, whether that’s actor issues or production quality. A truly bizarre situation unfolded in Hollywood yesterday as an avalanche of sites began to report that Warner Bros. would not be releasing its upcoming Batgirl movie.

The movie, based on DC Comics characters, was in the final stages of editing. Read more at straitstimes.com.

"Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actor and this decision is not a reflection of her performance. It will not be released in theatres or on the company's HBO Max streaming service, Variety and Deadline reported on Tuesday (Aug 2). Grace, 27, is of Dominican heritage.

The movie Batgirl, which had completed shooting and was in post-production, was cancelled on Tuesday to cut costs and focus more on theater-based releases.

The project was approved in 2021 with a focus on the David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, recently oversaw the shutting down of CNN’s $300 million streaming service, CNN+, just a month after it was launched. The film, which was to see Fans might want a repeat of what happened with Zack Snyder’s version of Justice League with Batgirl, too. Batgirl will instead become one of the American movies that haven't been released. Despite being surprising, the move is hardly shocking because business experts had already noticed that Comic-Con 2022 passed by without any mention of the film.

Sorry, DC universe fans: the movie, which starred 'In The Heights' actress Leslie Grace in the title role, will not be released theatrically or on HBO Max.

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InIn 1989, Alan Moore wanted to write a comic about what a man does when driven to the point of insanity. In the comic book, The Killing Joke, the Joker ...

But the fan campaign to make that film happen also turned out to mainly be made up of bots and fake accounts. But the rest of us are going to suffer. More likely, Batgirl is just a victim, again, of a corporation out to make a buck. When you’re a giant unwieldy mess of a merger, you have to be ruthless. According to Variety, the film was tucked away, never to be seen, not because it was a bad movie but because the massive entity now known as Warner Bros. Discovery wanted a tax write-off. When Disney acquired Fox in 2019, it promptly killed a live-action Lumberjanes show, threatened to get rid of Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit for fear of offending brand loyalists with a happy-go-lucky Adolf Hitler, and shoved the perfectly lovely The New Mutants in the vault. In the comic book, The Killing Joke, the Joker kidnaps and tortures Jim Gordon to see if he can drive him to the point of insanity that both the Joker and Batman have already reached in their own respective ways. Despite the fact that most of us have seen Batman Forever, Catwoman, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman 1984, Joker, Suicide Squad, Superman Returns, Jonah Hex, and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace and know just how tolerant Warner Bros. typically is of dog-shit superhero movies. Maybe this is all an elaborate plan by Warner Bros. Discovery to drum up support for the film and foster a big movement by fans who will demand the company release it. I can only hope Warner Bros. Discovery wasn’t as cruel when it canceled the already completed Batgirl film this week. At the time, much was said about how awful The New Mutants was. In 1989, Alan Moore wanted to write a comic about what a man does when driven to the point of insanity.

New York (AP) -- Warner Bros. has axed the $90 million “Batgirl” film planned for HBO Max, according to a person connected with the film who was not ...

It won’t be released in theaters or on the company’s HBO Max streaming service, the New York Post, Deadline and others reported Tuesday. Variety said it cost $90 million to make. The movie, based on DC Comics characters, was in the final stages of editing.

"Batgirl" was slated for release on HBO Max and would have starred “In the Heights” actress Leslie Grace, plus Michael Keaton as Batman.

And even the star power of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in the upcoming “Black Adam” isn’t enough to offset the flood of continual bad news. But the biggest holy cow moment of all from “Batgirl” was going to be the return of Keaton as Batman. There are few bigger deals in comic book culture than his answering a Bat-signal’s call in the 21st century. “Batgirl” making it this far only to never be seen is a new black eye for WB/DC, which continues to stumble over its own good intentions by not having a true Kevin Feige figure to come up with a master plan for its superheroes. Simmons is best known for giving one of the all-time great superhero movie performances in Sam Raimi’s original “Spider-Man” trilogy as Daily Bugle editor in chief J. Jonah Jameson. If Simmons is in your superhero movie, it’s a big deal. If Zachary Levi’s Shazam was standing heroically over Henry Cavill’s Superman with lightning striking behind him in an ode to “ Kingdom Come,” you think people wouldn’t pay money to see that? Now that the Warner Bros./Discovery merger is complete, it seems the expectations for live-action adaptations featuring DC characters has changed drastically.

Not only are more series than ever being developed on big budgets, but blockbuster movies are being made for streaming services, and among the latest was HBO ...

Although there have been a number of reports regarding the actual quality of the film, most seem to agree Batgirl wasn't that bad. After a follower pointed out the movie's minority star and directors, Derrickson seemed to question whether that played a role in Warner Bros.' decision: "wow what a coincidence, huh?" Directors El Arbi and Fallah just recently collaborated with Marvel Studios on Ms. Marvel, so perhaps their comic book future may be over there on Season 2 or other projects. HBO Max's sudden cancelation of Batgirl has truly shaken Hollywood, with many calling the move completely unprecedented. Canceling a flick that has already wrapped production and is well into post-production is certainly a unique move, but Warner Bros. Discovery doesn't seem as invested in the previous management's desire to push HBO Max. There have been a number of reasons given for the cancelation between poor quality, tax purposes, and a change in the company's overall direction, but the official explanation is that the choice "reflects [their] leadership's strategic shift."

Warner Bros. has given the highly anticipated Batgirl movie the ax to save the costs of bringing the film to theatrical release.

Rather than releasing straight to HBO Max as intended, or dishing out the $30 to $50 million it would take to market the film and release it theatrically, Warner Bros. Discovery will eat the $90 million and prospective "creative capital" in likely favor of tax write-downs. During production for the film, Warner Bros. heads Kilar and Sarnoff devoted a number of efforts to reinforce HBO Max, including the decision to go live with the entirety of 2021's theatrical slate en masse. “The decision to not release Batgirl reflects our leadership’s strategic shift as it relates to the DC universe and HBO Max. Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actor and this decision is not a reflection of her performance. However, when Zaslav, a notoriously budget-conscious penny-pincher, took over after the Warner Bros. and Discovery merger in the spring of 2022, the straight-to-streaming tactic was discarded for theatrical first-run feature films once again. This on top of rumors that the finished product wasn't quite up to viewers' standards assures Batgirl won't be emerging from the shadows any time soon. While Warner Bros. was wholly committed to bolstering their streaming service, HBO Max, under Jason Kilar and Ann Sarnoff during Batgirl's production, the DC Extended Universe feature got caught in the maw of new Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav's strategic shift.

Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah have released a statement to express shock and sadness over the decision for their already shot film to be killed.

“We’ll talk about how we’re going to do it, and when, soon,” he said. “Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actor and this decision is not a reflection of her performance. The $90m-budget film, which was intended to premiere on US streaming service HBO Max, had finished shooting and was being test screened. It’s reported that Discovery took on about $43bn of debt during the merger. 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. “Batgirl For Life.”

The film was based on the DC Comics character Barbara Gordon - or Batgirl - played by Leslie Grace. She appeared alongside Michael Keaton as Batman, Brendan ...

- Yellow Submarine: In 2009, Disney and director Robert Zemeckis announced a remake of the Beatles' 1968 musical comedy, due for release in 2012. He had been courting Brad Pitt to play the lead role of Ned Land, but Pitt officially turned the role down earlier that year. - 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea: The Australian government had offered $20m to secure the production of a remake of Jules Verne's classic story. It was one of many ideas put forward for the film, with Smith's script thrown out by director Tim Burton - who also chose Nicolas Cage to be the film's leading man. Shelving it means the company won't have to carry the losses on its books. The film reportedly had not tested well with audiences in early screenings.

The "Batgirl" film that was set to bring the DC Comics character to the big screen will no longer be released by Warner Bros., according to the studio.

"Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actor and this decision is not a reflection of her performance," the statement added. "We are incredibly grateful to the filmmakers of 'Batgirl' and 'Scoob! Holiday Haunt' and their respective casts and we hope to collaborate with everyone again in the near future." The movie was set to star "In the Heights" star Leslie Grace in the title role.

Sorry, DC universe fans: the movie, which starred 'In The Heights' actress Leslie Grace in the title role, will not be released theatrically or on HBO Max.

It was a sequel to the 2020 film Scoob!, of which Variety wrote in its review: "These are trying times, and parents may be grateful to have a virtual babysitter to distract their kids for 90 minutes, in which case, Scoob! is surely more effective than sitting them in front of the fish tank." Then along comes this Batgirl decision — a lot of people are wondering whether they could do the same thing for The Flash." "It tested in the 30s, which as anybody knows, if you test in the 30s, you fail math and have to redo eighth grade. "Over at Universal, the movie Cats made it to our screens. 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. "We have to acknowledge that Val Kilmer in a nippled Batsuit by Joel Schumacher made it to our screens," he notes. Parents of an 18-year-old in North Dakota have also filed legal claims saying that Miller groomed and controlled their child for several years. Maybe they will someday insha'Allah ... In any case, as huge fans of Batman since we were little kids, it was a privilege and an honor to have been part of the DCEU [DC Extended Universe], even if it was for a brief moment. "Not only did it have Leslie Grace — a Latina actress — leading the film, but this is work that hundreds, if not thousands, of people spent many, many months of their lives working on," he says. Since then, David Zaslav has come in as CEO of the newly formed Warner Bros. Discovery company, and has reversed their streaming-first corporate plans. The film had originally been planned with a $75 million budget that had rocketed up to $90 million, due to COVID-related delays. So it really was seen by the fandom with a certain degree of excitement."

Just as the film was in post-production, management at Warner Bros Discovery decided to pull the plug on the DC Comics film BatGirl, despite it having a ...

It would not be surprising to see the company shut down several cable networks whose outlook is bleak. One area which is likely to be hit is cable networks. At the same time, they also gave thumbs down to airing the animated film “Scoobi! Holiday Haunt” which was estimated to have a $40 million budget.

THE directors of Batgirl said on Wednesday they were “shocked” that the US$90 million dollar superhero film had been axed by the studio and will now not be ...

" I am proud of the love, hard work and intention all of our incredible cast and tireless crew put into this film," Grace wrote on social media.

It’s all very positive, and very light on the “fuck you, Warner Bros. Discovery president David Zaslav.” Grace’s post comes not long after the film’s directors, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Falla, made their own social media statements about the cancellation, describing themselves as “saddened and shocked by the news.” On the heels of the recent news about our movie “Batgirl,” I am proud of the love, hard work and intention all of our incredible cast and tireless crew put into this film over 7 months in Scotland. I feel blessed to have worked among absolute greats and forged 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!”

The movie also featured Michael Keaton as Batman, J.K. Simmons as Commissioner James Gordon and Brendan Fraser as the villain Firefly. "We are saddened and ...

Variety said the US$90 million hole this would leave in the studio's balance sheet would probably be dealt with via a tax write-down - a process where companies reduce their exposure to tax by subtracting losses from their profits. The move sent shockwaves through Hollywood, where industry veterans said it was unprecedented for a movie to be so close to completion - and with so much money already spent - and not be released. Grace, the breakout star of musical film In The Heights (2021), had told interviewers how excited she was to have landed the roll, and how thrilled she was to be working with Keaton and other luminaries.

Warner Bros axed the Batgirl film planned for HBO Max, opting to shelve the $US90 million ($A130 million)...

Maybe one day they will insha'Allah (if God wills)." Batgirl, approved before WarnerMedia's merger with Discovery Inc, will instead simply not see the light of day. Movie that don't meet studio expectations are typically sold off or dumped with little fanfare.