Entertainment
Batgirl directors confirm axed film will never be released as they recall ‘traumatic’ moment they heard crushing news-Emily Bashforth-Entertainment – Metro
The film had an $80million budget and was in post-production.
Batgirl directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah had to scrap their $80million budget project (Picture: Instagram)
The decision to axe Batgirl amid post-production was one that seriously shocked DC fans.
Warner Bros. abruptly scrapped the flick despite its $80million (£66m) budget back in August, as part of a cost-saving move for under David Zaslav’s new regime.
At the time, directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah said in a statement that they were ‘shocked and saddened’, but said it was a ‘privilege’ to have worked on the film.
Now, the directors have recalled being ‘traumatised’ upon hearing the crushing news that their DC Extended Universe flick wouldn’t be brought to the silver screen, despite filming having wrapped.
‘It was a traumatic experience,’ Fallah told Deadline at the Red Sea International Film Festival.
He said that the pair went through ‘all the emotions’, with El Arbi adding: ‘At that time, it was pretty unprecedented, so it was like movie history, but in a crazy way.’
The cast members were also left devastated when the film was axed after the first round of edits (Picture: Instagram)
As well as their own upset, the Belgian duo felt even worse for the cast, which included In The Heights actress Leslie Grace playing the titular superheroine alongside Michael Keaton, Brendan Fraser, and JK Simmons.
‘I was not done yet – far from it,’ said El Arbi, clarifying that just one round of edits had been finished.
‘There was still a lot of work to be done but they just said it was financial decisions and so that’s that and the movie can never be released.’
Leslie Grace played the lead role of the superheroine (Picture: Angela Weiss/AFP/Getty)
On the impact on the actors and fellow crew members, Fallah continued: ‘But we got so much support from the whole industry from directors to screenwriters to studio people that really supported us through this really difficult time and that we felt that we were not alone, and that’s positive.’
And if you’re still hanging onto a sliver of hope that Batgirl might get its moment to shine sometime in the future, we hate to break it to you but it just won’t happen.
When asked whether there could be any way at all for fans to watch the action movie, El Arbi said: ‘No, not at all.’
The film’s directors say a final version will never see the light of day (Picture: Instagram)
He explained that there’s ‘nothing that we can do’ to ‘influence’ the powers above, but he believes Fraser being nominated for an Oscar for The Whale could work in their favour.
‘Maybe that’s going to help us out because he gave an Oscar-winning performance.’
‘Should it maybe be released, there’s still a lot of work to be done and I don’t know if they are really going to go back for that,’ the directors said.
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When announcing that Batgirl would not be taken forward to release earlier this year, a spokesperson said: A spokesperson said: ‘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.
‘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.’
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