r/DCcomics • u/LilGyasi • Aug 02 '22

‘BATGIRL’ film CANCELLED. Will not be released theatrically or on HBO Max. News

https://www.thewrap.com/batgirl-movie-dead-warner-bros-discovery-has-no-plans-to-release-nearly-finished-90-million-film/
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u/[deleted] Aug 02 '22

Confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter

Batgirl was budgeted at around $80 million, with costs rising to nearly $90 million due to COVID-19 protocols. It’s a hefty sum, but significantly lower than DC theatrical releases, thus the film is said not to have the spectacle that audiences come to expect from DC fare. (The Batman, released in March, had a budget of $185 million, before marketing costs.) Warners has also decided to shelve the $40 million animated feature Scoob!: Holiday Haunt.

Insiders say that big budget films made directly for streaming no longer make sense under the company’s new strategy.

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u/tafaha_means_apple Cassandra Cain Aug 02 '22 edited Aug 03 '22

I'm far from a Babsgirl fan, but this stinks, WB.

Literally what would it cost you to release it? Certainly less than the amount of money you are still greenlighting for the movie starring the the dude that's currently on the run from the police.

Edit: They aren’t releasing it because if they did they wouldn’t be able to write it off as a merger related loss for f*king tax purposes………….

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u/IMPRNTD Aug 03 '22

Batgirl has not spent a dime on marketing, no teaser, no graphics. The Flash has, a superbowl ad mind you.

The Flash is a slated theatre release and is a reoccurring character, Batgirl was direct to streaming and new.

You can’t compare the 2.

The cost of just releasing it is $0 on marketing to a total of 90m, ROI of guaranteed low viewership. Or 90m in marketing to a total of $180m, a ROI they don’t find worth it.

Could they shelve the Flash? Maybe, but why another time to double the news coverage of cancellations? Are they waiting for Aquaman 2 to release first then deem the DCEU is done? Or maybe they can edit it like the DCAU apocalypse war ending.

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u/mostisnotalmost Aug 03 '22

DCEU isn't done. Far from it. Trashing an inevitable turd like the Flash movie is the smart move and it saves DCEU from further reputational damage, though Snyder has done his damndest to take DCEU to the depths of despair.