Though most of the focus right now when it comes to the DC Extended Universe is on Justice League – and understandably so – there’s a hushed excitement starting to build around Batgirl. Why? Well, for one, the character deserves a proper big screen adaptation, but aside from that, Wonder Woman has now proven that female superheroes can flourish at the box office.
Of course, there’s also the fact that Joss Whedon is behind the camera here, and as such, it’s very likely that this is going to be a big hit for the franchise. Granted, we don’t know too much about it just yet, but with reports saying that the director is eyeing The New 52 for inspiration and hoping to cast an unknown, it seems like Batgirl could soon become one of the DCEU’s most promising projects.
Hoping to heighten that anticipation even more is another leak from 4chan, which has been on fire lately with news pertaining to Warner Bros.’ burgeoning cinematic universe. We’d usually give you the ‘take this with a grain of salt’ message at this stage, but by now, you either buy into these rumors with excitement and giddiness or completely dismiss them as being nothing more than fan fiction.
Anyways, this latest leak has some interesting news relating to Barbara Gordon’s upcoming standalone film. According to the report, Batgirl is now a priority for the studio, thanks to the success of Wonder Woman, and will apparently cover the character’s origin story, using flashbacks to do so – not unlike Patty Jenkins’ aforementioned movie. Not only that, but apparently, Alysia Yeoh, James Gordon Jr. (who’ll be the villain), Robin and even Black Canary may be involved, with the latter only coming in for a cameo to help introduce her into the DCEU.
But wait, there’s more. In an effort to increase the diversity in their franchise, Warner Bros. is hoping to cast a woman of color to play Batgirl. Unfortunately, there’s no mention of which actresses the studio’s looking at, and we haven’t heard anything yet on who might be in the running, but if true, then this at least narrows it down in regards to who may land the role.
That being said, nothing’s set in stone at this point and with Whedon busy working on those Justice League reshoots, it’ll likely be some time before we hear anything official about the casting. Still, you can’t deny that Batgirl is quickly becoming one of the most exciting projects on WB’s slate and we’ll be sure to keep you right up to date with any and all further updates as they emerge.