Warner Bros has scrapped its new £74 million Batgirl movie after it reportedly received poor reviews in test screenings — making it one of the most expensive movies ever to be canned.
The DC Comics film, with actress Leslie Grace in the title role and Michael Keaton returning to the role of Batman, was scheduled for release later this year and is said to have cost the studio about $90million (£74 million) to make.
It was originally set to be made specifically for the streaming service HBO Max but the studio has confirmed it will not be released there or in cinemas.
Industry magazine The Hollywood Reporter said its budget had risen due to the pressures of filming during the Covid-19 pandemic and the studio decided it did not have the “spectacle that audiences have come to expect” from superhero films so there was no hope of it making the money back.
However, the New York Post — which broke the story last night — cited an unnamed source who said the film had performed so poorly during early test screenings that Warner Bros decided to cut its losses.
“They think an unspeakable Batgirl is going to be irredeemable,” the source told the newspaper.
Cast members including Grace were pictured working on the film in Scotland in January when the Trongate area of Glasgow was transformed into Gotham City for the film’s backdrop.
The film was set in the world of Batman and focused on Grace’s character Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Gotham police commissioner Jim Gordon.
The decision comes after changes at the top in the major studio which merged with Discovery last year.
Its chief executive David Zaslav is said to be looking for savings, having recently shut down CNN’s £240 million streaming service just one month after it launched, and wants the studio to concentrate on films made for cinema release. Also cancelled was a £30 million animated adaptation of the Scooby-Doo cartoon series, Scoob! Holiday Haunt.
In a statement, Warner Bros Discovery 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.”
It comes as Warner Bros faces a dilemma over whether to release another of its superhero titles — The Flash — as its lead star, Ezra Miller, has been arrested several times and faces allegations of harassment.
