Batgirl Movie to Be Helmed by Bad Boys for Life, Ms. Marvel Directors

DC's long-gestating Batgirl movie has officially found its directors. On Wednesday, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, who are best known for directing Bad Boys for Life and upcoming episodes of Disney+'s Ms. Marvel, will be helming the upcoming film. The project, which is reportedly being planned for release on HBO Max, is written by Birds of Prey and The Flash alum Christina Hodson. Cruella producer Kristin Burr has also joined the project as a producer. The film's lead role has not been cast.

'With Batgirl, we hope to take the audience on a fun ride and see a different side of Gotham," Burr said in a statement. "Christina's script is crackling with spirit. Adil and Bilall have an excited and joyous energy which is infectious, making them the perfect filmmakers for this Batproject. And I'm just psyched I get to be part of the DC universe, which is super cool."

Batgirl will follow the solo adventures of Barbara Gordon, the fan-favorite character who has operated as both Batgirl and the skilled hacker Oracle in the comics. A film for the character has been in the works since 2017, with Joss Whedon previously enlisted to both write and direct the project, only to depart it in April of 2018 after claiming he did not have a story. Hodson was brought on to the project shortly after.

"Oh I'm just super excited about it," Hodson told ComicBook.com in 2018. "I can say so little about this one, but I can tell you I'm having so much fun writing her. She is such a great character and so different than Harley. Yeah, I'm having a blast, and I can't tell you any of the things that I'm doing! I'm just excited for her to be holding her own against all the other superheroes."

Given Hodson's work on Birds of Prey — which introduced live-action incarnations of Batgirl's teammates and friends Dinah Lance/Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett) and Helena Bertinelli/Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) — fans will surely begin to speculate as to whether or not those characters could make cameo appearances as well.

What do you think of DC's Batgirl movie finally finding directors? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!