Fancasting DC’s ‘Birds of Prey’ Movie

DC fans were met with a pleasant surprise this week, when it was reported that Cathy Yan is being eyed to direct a live-action adaptation of Birds of Prey.

The team-up film will have Margot Robbie reprise her role as Harley Quinn, alongside a group of DC female heroines. And while it’s unclear exactly which characters will be a part of that group – with one report putting Harley and Barbara Gordon/Batgirl at the center of the film – fans are sure to begin speculating about their dream Birds of Prey roster.

With reports indicating that the film could begin shooting at the end of this year, it’s only a matter of time until the film’s main roles begin to be cast. So with that in mind, we thought we’d run down some of the actresses we’d most love to see join Birds of Prey.

Batgirl – Jane Levy

Casting the DC Extended Universe’s Batgirl has been a topic of conversation for quite some time, even before Joss Whedon’s attempt at a Batgirl solo film was announced last year.

Reports indicate that Barbara Gordon’s DCEU debut would essentially follow the Black Panther or Aquaman method, appearing in a team-up film before setting up her own solo story. And while there’s no telling exactly where those stories could go, we think that Jane Levy would be a great choice.

The 28-year-old actress has had a pretty diverse filmography over the years, most notably appearing in Suburgatory and Twin Peaks and in horror movies like Evil Dead and Don’t Breathe. Not only does Levy have Barbara’s trademark red hair, but she has the acting ability to play any version of Batgirl that has graced comics in recent years, from the more spunky Burnside version to Oracle to the return of Batgirl in the New 52.

Black Canary – Katheryn Winnick

It’s hard to deny how significant of a role Black Canary plays in the Birds of Prey comics, something that should absolutely continue into the film adaptation. And when it comes to casting Dinah Laurel Lance, Warner Bros. really just has to turn to the most popular fancast – Katheryn Winnick.

The 40-year-old actress is probably best known for her role as Lagertha on Vikings, a role that has earned her plenty of fan love over the past few years. Back in 2016, Winnick got a whole new legion of fans after she voiced her interest in playing Black Canary, something that she has continued to do in the year-and-a-half since.

For many fans, Winnick feels like the most obvious choice — for a very good reason. Winnick looks the part, has plenty of experience playing a badass female character, and has been training in martial arts since she was seven years old. Not only would her performance be distinctly different from the multiple Black Canaries we’ve seen on Arrow, but she would be able to easily transition into a hypothetical Green Arrow movie or any other sort of DCEU venture.

Huntress – Gugu Mbatha-Raw

Rounding out the original Birds of Prey trio – all of whom should make appearances of some sort in the movie – is Huntress. The character has gone through plenty of evolutions over her DC Comics tenure, making it a little hard to pin down a quintessential actress to portray her in the movies. But going off of the Helena Bertinelli incarnation – particularly, the version of her seen in recent titles like Grayson and Batgirl and the Birds of Prey – we’d love to see Gugu Mbatha-Raw take on the role.

Mbatha-Raw has become a pretty beloved actress over the years, beginning with her role as Martha Jones’ sister Tish in Doctor Who. Her role in the sci-fi and genre space has only grown in recent years, with her appearing in Beauty and the Beast, A Wrinkle in Time and The Cloverfield Paradox.

The 35-year-old actress might not be a household name yet, but she has the talent and the adoring fanbase to make her a natural fit for Birds of Prey. Not only is it easy to picture Mbatha-Raw kicking ass and taking names with a crossbow, but her work in Paradox – and in the universally-praised Black Mirror episode “San Junipero” – show just how well she can play a woman who is haunted by the ghosts of her past.

Lady Blackhawk – Tatiana Maslany

Sure, there’s no telling if Zinda Blake would end up making her way to the DCEU, seeing as she’s arguably not as widely known of a character as the other Birds of Prey members. But following the news that Steven Spielberg is set to direct a Blackhawk movie – about the very World War II-era group that Zinda originates from – it almost feels like a missed opportunity not to give Lady Blackhawk some sort of role in both films.

Finding someone able to play both sides of Lady Blackhawk – the ambitious soldier determined to break stereotypes and join the Blackhawks, and the woman out of time who decides to join the Birds of Prey – is theoretically no easy task. But one pretty perfect (albeit, slightly unexpected) choice would be none other than Orphan Black star Tatiana Maslany.

The 32-year-old actress has earned a legion of fans, and an Emmy award, for her role as a dozen-or-so different clones on Orphan Black. As any member of Clone Club will tell you, Maslany has an amazing ability to transform into a character, and be a bonafide badass in the process. And Maslany  came close to playing two different roles in the Star Wars universe, meaning she certainly has enough clout to be a fixture of the DCEU.

Starling – Lindsey Morgan

From there, the possibilities of which DC heroines would appear in Birds of Prey get a little varied. But one interesting choice – who plays a surprising role in the Birds of Prey comics – is Evelyn Crawford/Starling.

Evelyn has longstanding ties to Dinah, and ends up joining the Birds of Prey despite being an outlaw of the government. Granted, she might not be the most well-known character, with the only live-action iteration of her, on last season of Arrow, essentially becoming a mixture of Starling and Artemis. But introducing a character who’s a bit more morally ambiguous – but still has ties to both the heroes and villains of the film – would be a pretty interesting dynamic.

With that in mind, we think that Lindsey Morgan would be a pretty interesting choice for the role. The actress has earned a legion of fans from her role as The 100‘s Raven Reyes, and caught some attention about a year ago when she was rumored to have been cast as Batgirl. Even though some fans are still campaigning for her to play the part, we think that Starling could be a role that she would be able to totally make her own.

Poison Ivy – Rihanna

Fans have wondered for quite some time what exactly the fate of the proposed Gotham City Sirens movie is, and if the film is essentially being folded into Birds of Prey.

If that is the case, you can’t have Harley without her best girl, Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy. And while there is an ever-growing list of fancasts for the character, we’re really intrigued by the possibility of Rihanna playing the part.

Sure, Rihanna is best known for her prolific music career, but she’s recently made more of a leap into acting. The 30-year-old reimagined the role of Psycho protagonist Marion Crane in the final season of Bates Motel, and is already being deemed a fan-favorite of Warner Bros’ upcoming Ocean’s 8 film.

To some, Rihanna would certainly be an unexpected choice to play Ivy — but that’s exactly the reason why it should happen. It would provide viewers with an interesting foil to Robbie’s Harley Quinn, all while paving an iteration of the character wholly unique from what’s been seen in Batman & Robin and Gotham.

Catwoman – Eiza Gonzalez

And finally, if the original trio of the Gotham City Sirens end up playing a role in Birds of Prey, then we should expect Selina Kyle/Catwoman to make an appearance as well.

As with Ivy, there are an ever-growing number of choices to play Selina, but we would love to see Eiza Gonzalez take on the role. Gonzalez is best known to American audiences for her role in the From Dusk Till Dawn television series, and for her scene-stealing performance as Darling in last year’s Baby Driver.

The topic of her playing Catwoman has been tossed around quite a bit, following a series of social media clues in July and October of last year. Like with Winnick, this has led some fans to essentially default to seeing Gonzalez in the role. Not only could Gonzalez nail the different complexities that come to a Catwoman performance, but she could kick ass and have a lot of fun in the process. 

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Who would you like to see cast in Birds of Prey? Let us know what you think in the comments below.