Birds of Prey: Who Is Bernie the Beaver?

Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) officially hit theaters, offering moviegoers what might be the most unique superhero film to hit the big screen and certainly a one-of-a-kind experience for the DC Extended Universe. The female-led ensemble is one that offers not only a wild ride for viewers, but also introduces some of DC's biggest female heroes, including Huntress and Black Canary, to the big screen in a big way. But those aren't the only characters who get their introduction in Birds of Prey. The film is full of interesting nods to comics and that includes one unusual character that fans might not be familiar with: Bernie the Beaver.

Spoilers for Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) below.

Birds of Prey largely follows the story of Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) following her breakup with the Joker. As Harley soon discovers, that puts a big target on her back and leads to an unlikely team-up between herself and Dinah Lance/Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), Helena Bertinelli/Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez), and Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco) -- with Cassandra ultimately being someone they're trying to protect from Roman Sionis/Black Mask (Ewan McGregor) thanks to Cassandra stealing and swallowing the Bertinelli diamond which Sionis is after.

Before getting to the actual team-up, however, Harley is apprehended by Sionis who plans to kill her just because he can. Harley quickly declares that she can get the Bertinelli diamond back for him if he'll just let her go. Sionis agrees, which prompts Harley to bust Cassandra out of Gotham City jail and take the kid back to her apartment to hide out as Sionis has put a big bounty on the kid's head. While getting settled in, Harley talks to her pet hyena, Bruce, as well as a stuffed beaver wearing a tutu. It's pretty clear that Harley can "hear" the beaver talking to her, though when Cassandra asks who the beaver is, Harley says he's just that, a beaver.

For fans of the comics, however, that is no ordinary beaver. He's Bernie the Beaver. The character made his first appearance in Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti's Harley Quinn Volume 2 from 2014 and has been a staple of the character's story ever since. As seen in the film, Bernie is, in fact, a taxidermied beaver, but he's also one of Harley's closest friends who she talks to and who "talks" to her in something of a gag that highlights not only how absolutely insane Harley is, but also that the deranged character also has a pretty big heart. At least for taxidermied animals.

In Birds of Prey, Bernie doesn't really play much of a role other than that one scene (though Harley does carry him around with her after her apartment is blown to smithereens). Still, for fans, it's a great little treat and it might not be entirely the only way the character makes his appearance live-action. At one point in the film, the many reasons Sionis has grievances with Harley flashes on the screen, including a mention that Harley voted for Bernie. Director Cathy Yan explained in an interview that while the moment was a Bernie Sanders nod, the moment was a bit of humor rather than a political statement. However, one can't help but to see the joke working on multiple levels. Maybe Harley voted for Bernie not because of his politics but because he happened to share a name with her best friend.

That and honestly it's just such a Harley thing to do, to think of the character writing in a vote for her beloved Bernie the Beaver.

Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is in theaters now. Other upcoming DC movies include Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5th, The Batman on June 25, 2021, The Suicide Squad on August 6, 2021, Black Adam on December 22, 2021, Shazam! 2 on April 1, 2022, The Flash on July 1, 2022, and Aquaman 2 on December 16, 2022.