Batgirl is one of many lower budgeted movies being developed for HBO Max, and while Barbara Gordon is deserving of a big screen adventure, it's still exciting to think about her live-action return.
Alicia Silverstone suited up as this Caped Crusader in 1997's Batman & Robin, and that's pretty much it. With this movie - that will see In The Heights star Leslie Grace suit up as the Gotham City superhero - Warner Bros. can finally do the character justice. Rumour has it that Firefly could be the lead villain, but which supporting characters should join Barbara on the streaming service?
Following the news that J.K. Simmons is set to return as Commissioner Jim Gordon, that's something we've been giving a lot of thought to. Batgirl occupies a different corner of Gotham to Batman (you won't find the Dark Knight here), which presents this movie with a lot of unique opportunities.
To check out these suggestions, all you guys need to do is click on the "Next" button below!
5. Black Canary
Birds of Prey struck a chord with critics, but it failed to make much of an impact at the box office. Ultimately, it seems this was just the wrong direction to take these characters in, but it would be a terrible shame for these heroes to not continue making their presence felt in the DC Extended Universe.
Renee Montoya and Huntress have potential, but it's Black Canary we'd like to see team-up with Batgirl in this movie. We're sure that Barbara's investigation into Firefly (or whoever is this movie's big bad) could lead to her crossing paths with her fellow vigilante, and we'd like to think she's mastered her superpowers by this point and can use her Canary Cry without passing out!
Regardless, Batgirl feels like a great excuse to revisit Black Canary, especially as she has a history with Barbara. Who knows, this could even lead to a comic accurate Birds of Prey spinoff on HBO Max.
4. Alysia Yeoh
In terms of supporting characters, there are quite a few options to pick from. For us, though, it's Alysia Yeoh who should be a priority, especially as Barbara Gordon's roommate would bring more diversity into the DCEU.
A self-described activist, the wannabe chef is of Singaporean descent and after Barbara poured her heart out to Alysia, she admitted that she's transgender (a touching moment in the comics that would translate nicely to screen). Beyond that, Alysia is a fun character in her own right and would make for an exciting presence in the movie.
In terms of non-powered supporting characters for Barbara's circle of friends, writer Christina Hodson and directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah would be wise to turn to the time the Caped Crusader spent in Burnside.
3. Stephanie Brown/Spoiler
The daughter of the villainous Cluemaster, Stephanie Brown became Spoiler in a bid to "spoiler" her father's plans. Ultimately, she'd become the first female Robin after Tim Drake was forced to step down, but later became Batgirl after Cassandra Cain decided to pass the mantle to her.
She's been The Spoiler again in recent years, but regardless of the mantle she holds in the DCEU, there's potential here to explore Batgirl's dynamic with a young woman looking to follow in her footsteps.
Assuming Ben Affleck's Batman is dead at this point in this shared world's history, then it might be most interesting for Stephanie to be a Robin without a Batman. Having escaped the Dark Knight's shadow, Batgirl might not want to mentor a rookie superhero, but we have a feeling there's a good story that could be told here.
2. Jason Todd
In recent years, DC Comics has explored the possibility of Jason Todd having romantic feelings for Barbara Gordon. That was actually put front and centre in the pages of Three Jokers, and while we're not suggesting exploring that in this movie (not yet, anyway), it might be fun to catch up with Jason.
It's up to Warner Bros. to decide whether he's a full-blown villain or anti-hero at this point, but it might be more interesting to explore the latter. With that, Batgirl can see the darker, more violent route she could have headed down without someone like Jim Gordon in her life after she parted ways with Batman (as is so often the case in the comics, we're assuming the Bat-Family will be estranged from their leader).
Red Hood is a character who could easily get his own movie on HBO Max, and if Batgirl sets the stage for that with a brief cameo, then it would be no bad thing for the future of the DCEU.
1. Nightwing
Once upon a time, Warner Bros. was developing a Nightwing movie with The Tomorrow War director Chris McKay. Unfortunately, that appears to have fallen by the wayside in recent years, so why not use Batgirl as a launching platform for the project to finally become a reality?
We'd love to see an entire slate of movies on HBO Max picking up with Batman's former sidekicks, and a conversation between Barbara and Dick Grayson about their shared history with the Dark Knight would be a fun way of building on the history of whatever form the DCEU is taking (as Simmons is returning as Gordon, we have to assume Batfleck is or was part of this world).
The focus should remain on Batgirl, so it's going to have to be Dick or Jason rather than both. We're not sure which we'd prefer, but dammit, it's about time Nightwing gets some live-action love beyond, ugh, Titans.