With new movies featuring Batman, Superman, and Supergirl all on the way, one more name had to be added to the list. And now she has. After years in limbo, Batgirl is back and it just picked up its directors in Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah.
El Arbi and Fallah directed last year’s hit Bad Boys for Life and also worked on the upcoming Marvel show Ms. Marvel; screenwriter Christina Hodson wrote Bumblebee, Birds of Prey, and The Flash. As the Hollywood Reporter notes, however, Batgirl — presumably still based on DC Comics Barbara Gordon — will not aim for a theatrical release, but will instead go straight to HBO Max.
“With Batgirl, we hope to take the audience on a fun ride and see a different side of Gotham,” producer Kristin Burr told THR. “Christina [Hodson]’s script is crackling with spirit. Adil and Bilall have an excited and joyous energy which is infectious, making them the perfect filmmakers for this Batproject. And I’m just psyched I get to be part of the DC universe, which is super cool.”
Going forward, it’ll be interesting to see who is cast, what direction the film takes, and how much Batgirl will interact with the other DC characters. However, with women as the lead character, writer, and producer, you have to wonder why Warner Bros. didn’t hire a woman to direct too. No knock on El Arbi and Fallah, they’re talented filmmakers with a growing resume, but they feel slightly out of place. Plus… HBO Max for Batgirl’s first solo film? Why? (To that end, we’ve reached out to Warner Bros. for clarification and will update if we hear back.)
Nevertheless, it’s been so long since word of this new Batgirl film got out there, if it actually gets made, that should hopefully make it all worth it.