In August 2020, Leslie Grace’s highly-anticipated role as Batgirl in the DC movie of the same name was abruptly scrapped by Warner Bros. Despite having an $80million (£66m) budget, the studio decided to cut costs and scrap the project. Fans were devastated, as were the directors of the film Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah who said they were ‘traumatised’ by the news.
Leslie Grace was speaking to Variety when she revealed that she found out about the move ‘like everyone else’, not via correspondence from the studio. She shared that when news broke, her phone ‘just started blowing up’. She compared the sensation to a ‘deflating balloon’ and added that she was still optimistic and positive in light of the circumstances.
When asked whether she saw anything during shooting that suggested the movie ‘wasn’t going to work’, Leslie replied that there were obstacles, such as half of the shoot being night shoots in Scotland, where it never stops raining.
Adil and Bilall opened up about how the film’s axing affected them, with Bilall telling Deadline at the Red Sea International Film Festival: ‘It was a traumatic experience.’ Adil added that he was ‘not done yet – far from it’ and there was still ‘a lot of work to be done’. He concluded that it was a financial decision and that the movie can never be released.
On the impact on the actors and fellow crew members, Bilall 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.’
A spokesperson for DC commented on the announcement: ‘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.’
Despite being disappointed by news of the cancellation of Batgirl, Leslie Grace remains optimistic about her experience and it has clearly had an impact on her both professionally and personally.
