When Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) debuts in theaters next year, it will bring about the big-screen debut of Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco). With Cassandra appearing in years of DC Comics canon in wildly different ways, it sounds like Basco had a unique approach to preparing for the role. Basco recently spoke about as much in a recent interview with A Book Of, and particularly what other actresses she drew inspiration from.
“I really want to represent the Asian community – that alone inspires me to act because representation and diversity in the industry is super important to me.” Basco revealed. “Some of my idols who inspire me are people like Natalie Portman, Jodie Foster, and most importantly Sandra Oh. When preparing for the role of Cassandra Cain, I actually used them as inspiration, especially Natalie in The Professional and Jodi in Taxi Driver.”
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Basco also spoke about what went into her getting the role — including reading some of Cassandra’s comic appearances and fine-tuning her martial arts skills.
“The audition process was a month long and I had to go in about 5 times.” Basco explained. “I watched a bunch of movies, practiced my martial arts skills, and even read some comic books about Cassandra Cain to prepare. When I got the role, my mom picked me up from school right away and told me in the car with my agent on the phone. I was immediately in shock and couldn’t believe I booked it! I worked really hard on this role and got emotional because I wanted this part so bad! I mean I totally cried. I knew from that moment on, my life would change forever.”
Birds of Prey will follow a sort of unlikely team-up between Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez). Together, the women must work together to rescue Cassandra from one of Gotham’s most vicious crime lords, Black Mask (Ewan McGregor).
Are you excited to see Basco play Cassandra Cain in Birds of Prey? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
Upcoming DC movies include Joker on October 10th, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) on February 7, 2020, Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5, 2020, The Batman on June 25, 2021, The Suicide Squad on August 6, 2021, and Aquaman 2 on December 16, 2022.
