New ‘Batgirl’ Fight Footage Sparks Fury Over Canceled DC Movie

In light of the uproar over Warner Bros. Discovery canceling the “Coyote Vs. Acme” film and the removal of the “Looney Tunes” franchise from Max, it seems appropriate that the specter of another contentious aborted production is now causing them trouble. Recently discovered fight scenes from the Leslie Grace-led movie have rekindled speculation about why WBD opted to abandon the project entirely.

The video showcases stunt performers Emely Cartagena, Scott Rogers, and Stephen Dunlevy engaging in a fight scene that was intended for the film. While some critics have suggested it might be better if the movie had never been released, most viewers find themselves at odds with this opinion and are now even more vocal about their disappointment with the studio’s decision not to release it.

Prior to the tenure of James Gunn and Peter Safran, it was intended that Batgirl be released. Yet, despite its cancellation three years ago, you might assume that people would have forgotten about it altogether. However, this film had plans for Michael Keaton to reprise his role as Batman – possibly before he appeared in The Flash – also included the return of J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon within the DCEU, and offered Brendan Fraser an opportunity to showcase himself as the villain Firefly before he won an Oscar for his part in The Whale.

As a devotee, I can’t help but feel that this fresh material only serves to reinforce my belief that we’ve been deprived of a film worthy of standing alongside some other DC productions from the latter days of the DCEU. Sadly, these titles didn’t fare well and now it’s hard not to wonder what could have been.

‘Batgirl’ Was “Unreleasable,” But Not Everyone Agreed

After the cancellation of the film, numerous fans called for clarification from WBD, sparking several remarks by studio insiders who stated that the movie was deemed “unsuitable for release” and would have brought shame to the DC brand – in contrast to the disastrous launch of The Flash, evidently.

Nevertheless, Leslie Grace learned about the movie’s cancellation only after the New York Post announced it. Yet, she vehemently contradicted this idea, asserting that the version of the film she watched was truly “incredible,” even though it wasn’t fully edited and polished yet. She expressed her thoughts at the time as follows:

The one request I made was to watch the movie, but it wasn’t fully completed during testing. Many scenes were missing, as they were still in the early stages of editing due to all the chaos at the company. However, the parts that were included in the movie I saw were outstanding and showed great promise for a quality film. I hope we get to see more of it later on.

Is it possible that we’ll encounter more of Batgirl in the future, or could Warner Bros. Discovery revive the project? Could we ever discover what Brendan Fraser might have offered as Firefly had the project continued? Contrary to the ’60s Batman series, we won’t be able to anticipate updates on this matter by simply tuning in next week.

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2025-03-20 11:31