Batgirl director Adil El Arbi talks about the film’s cancellation and reveals details of what they had prepared.
Warner Bros. Discovery’s surprise cancellation of Batgirl left fans and filmmakers alike perplexed. Even though principal filming had already wrapped, the film was scrapped, leaving many wondering what could have been. Director Adil El Arbi recently spoke about this situation and offered details about the vision he and Bilall Fallah had for this DC Comics character.
In an interview with Yahoo Entertainment, Adil El Arbi expressed his pain over the cancellation of Batgirl and reflected on what could have been done differently. “I think about Batgirl every day. I mentally replay the making of the film and think: What should we have done differently? But as we say, that was God’s plan. We can only hope to return to DC one day.”
The director also provided insight into his approach for the film.
Adil El Arbi described how they intended to approach Gotham City and Barbara Gordon’s story in the DCEU. “It was really a mix between Nolan and Burton. Gotham City was a more realistic world and the story was very simple and emotional. It was more of an actor’s film without many visual effects.”
The creative team intended to use practical effects instead of CGI, using miniatures to create memorable action sequences. “We’re not really into CGI, so we use a lot of miniatures. There was a big action sequence where a truck crashed into a tunnel and we did it with miniatures like Burton did in Batman. It’s still the best thing we’ve ever done in movies – it was old school cinema and we’ll do it again!”
Batgirl
Despite the cancellation, El Arbi praised Brendan Fraser’s performance as Firefly and suggested that Batgirl would have been successful due to fans’ love for the Batman and Gotham City characters.
While Batgirl’s cancellation came as a surprise to many, the circumstances surrounding the decision remain a mystery. Some speculate that it was done to avoid spending more money on a movie that could conflict with what they were preparing for The Flash (2023). Which has been one of the worst premieres in the history of DC Comics.
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