'Batgirl' directors reveal they have no footage of film, still hope for release

Washington [US], August 23 : Filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, the directors of the recently shelved 'Batgirl' film, have revealed that they don't have any footage saved but remain hopeful that the film will be completed and released one day.
El Arbi and Fallah provided further information about Warner Bros' shocking decision to cancel the Batgirl movie, which was in the post-production stage, in a new interview for the SKRIPT YouTube channel, as per the Hollywood Reporter.
El Arbi, speaking in French, said they were in the middle of the editing process when executives from Warner told them the film was being shelved. "The guys from Warner told us, 'it was not a talent problem from our part or the actress, or even the quality of the movie,'" said El Arbi.
El Arbi continued, "They told us it was a strategic change. There was new management, and they wanted to save some money."
According to the Hollywood Reporter, David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros Discovery, decided to suspend the project in order to take a tax write-off on the $90 million movie, making Batgirl a victim of his new financial strategy.
In earlier reports, the pair were said to be in Morocco for El Arbi's wedding when they heard the news of Batgirl's shelving. Fallah revealed how he felt, "First, when I heard the news, I was shocked, I didn't know how to react. I wanted to break stuff, cry, even laugh. I was like, 'this is not happening.'"
Fallah added that they were surprised by the response from the public following the film's shelved release, in particular the trending hashtag #ReleaseBatgirl on social media.
"Seeing all the support on Twitter, and even from big directors Edgar Wright and James Gunn, who sent us supportive messages, it was comforting."
"After all we make movies for the audience, not for us," El Arbi said. "We just hope that one day the movie will be released, for the cast and crew. We are a small family." Said Fallah, "We hope, Inshallah, it will happen."
El Arbi and Fallah said that a lot would have to occur before that would even be a possibility when the interviewer asked if they thought that Batgirl will experience a resurrection similar to Zack Snyder's version of Justice League.
"Before it's released one day, there would be a lot of work still to do. Just like the Snyder Cut," El Arbi said, alluding to how Warner Bros spent a further $70 million on Zack Snyder's Justice League to finish the VFX, the score and shoot new scenes before it was released on HBO Max.