The directors of Batgirl have said they are “saddened and shocked” that Warner Bros has scrapped the film months before it was due to be released.
Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah shared a joint statement on Instagram saying they wished fans could have the “opportunity to see and embrace the final film themselves”.
The DC film, with Hollywood stars Michael Keaton, Brendan Fraser, JK Simmons and Leslie Grace, was filmed in Glasgow.
Production reportedly cost an estimated 70 million dollars (£57.6 million) and the film was scheduled for release in late 2022.
It comes after several cast and crew members including Grace and co-star Ethan Kai, as well as the directors, were pictured filming in Scotland.
El Arbi and Fallah said: “We are saddened and shocked by the news. 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. Maybe one day they will insha’Allah (if God wills).
“Our amazing cast and crew did a tremendous job and worked so hard to bring Batgirl to life.
The DC film, which was set to feature Hollywood stars Michael Keaton, Brendan Fraser and JK Simmons, was being filmed entirely in Glasgow (Andrew Milligan/PA)
“We are forever grateful to have been part of that team. It was a dream to work with such fantastic actors like Michael Keaton, J.K. 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.”
They added: “In any case, as huge fans of Batman since we were little kids, it was a privilege and an honor to have been a part of the DCEU, even if it was for a brief moment,” and signed off their statement “Batgirl For Life”.
In January, the Trongate area of Glasgow was transformed by set builders into Gotham City with alterations made to shop fronts and police cars.
Batgirl was due to focus on Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Gotham police commissioner Jim Gordon.
DC has been contacted for comment.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel