Warner Bros. and DC’s next film up is Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), and fans are finally starting to get more details and information regarding the anticpated film. ComicBook.com’s Brandon Davis had the chance to check out the set of Birds of Prey and speak to producers Erin Benach and K.K. Barrett about bringing this vision to life, and during the conversation got a full break down of the film’s characters and costumes, including Harley Quinn, Huntress, Black Canary, Roman (Black Mask), and more. Kicking things off is a look at Harley Quinn, and things will be slightly different from when fans last saw Margot Robbie in the role.
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“In some of our, some of my favorite looks from the movie for Harley, her ethos and behind her story is always something a little bit off from center and a little bit crazy. The idea being caution tape, maybe a place to stay away from,” Benach said. “And maybe it’s a way to caution the world against what she might do. And so, we kind of took that idea of that caution tape and tried to repurpose it into a costume, and we always wanted to create something that felt like Harley made it herself. She’s sort of a crafty person in the back room and she can make stuff herself. So, the shorts that she’s painted and that jacket that she’s put together herself, that’s kind of, that’s why we did it like that. It’s fun and a little crazy, like her.”
Next up was Huntress, who will be played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and will be living up to the edgy and at times lone wolf character fans know from the comics.
“So our Huntress, the character behind her is that she’s always about function, and someone who’s on a mission, and does not want to be distracted by outside sources,” Benach said. “Whereas you know, Harley might be walking in the streets at, ‘Oh, I want to grab that diamond and put it on myself, or grab that item and put it on myself’, and for, you know, grab it. Huntress is focused and she is sort of all business, and she’s super focused on the job at hand. We wanted to create something really functional for her, and also fashion-forward and cool. So we kind of created this tracksuit that you’ll see that she has many different tracksuits throughout the film.”
We did ask if she would ever have the familiar Huntress mask from the comics, but Benach said “can’t say.” Let’s hope that is a no comment way of saying yes.
Next is Black Canary, who will be played by Jurnee Smollett-Bell, and the character will feature a bit of an homage to the 70s.
“All right, our Canary. Canary, in this look that you’re seeing here, she’s on stage and she’s performing a song,” Benach said. “She’s got this really soulful quality about her, and we were trying to show that in the costume, that she was strong and soulful at the same time. She’s got this look that she created herself, put together armbands and things that maybe she cut up and put together for her performance. She, in general, she’s very inspired by the ’70s and streetwear in the ’70s. You’ll see throughout, she’s got silhouettes, really sleek suits, but with bell bottoms and high waisted pants. That’s our Canary vibes. You’ll see, there’s sort of a mix of genres with her and her looks.”
Now it’s time to talk some Renee Montoya, who will be played by Rosie Perez, and the team gave us a break down in broad terms of what one of her shirts means.
“Okay. Renee is, she is not being listened to by her peers and by her colleagues,” Benach said. “She’s kind of, she’s sexy and tough, kind of like every female superhero in our film. But she is-“
“Intuitive self thinker too. Yeah,” Barrett added.
“Yeah, for sure. For sure,’ Benach said. “And she’s sort of the person that is consistently getting shadowed. Is there any better way to say it?” Barrett said, “Pushed to the side.”
“Yeah, but she kind of is the only one that really knows the truth and is really trying to expose the truth,” Benach said. “So, she winds up having, she gets stuff all over her and she winds up having to take something out of the police station lost and found, and this is the only thing left that she’s able to find from the Gotham PD, from the office. And as you learn more about her character, you’ll see why that’s even more obnoxious, to her own self, that line”
After that, it’s time to talk Cassandra Cain, played by Ella Jay Basco. “Cass is our street urchin,” Benach said. “She is street-savvy and she’s kind of cool and tomboy in her way. She knows the streets, she thinks she knows the streets, but maybe not as well as she should, and we were just trying to give her this mean little cute girl vibe. She would have this jacket because she has lots of things she needs to stash in her jacket.”
Next up is the villain of the film Roman Sionis, otherwise known as Black Mask, who will be played by Ewan McGregor.
“Roman Sionis. Roman has a fun, plethora of looks in our movie,” Benach said. “He kind of has the world as his oyster, as far as what he can wear and what he’s able to afford and what he does wear. He wears white suits, where other people would be very dirty wearing white suits, but he can, that’s sort of the picture behind this one. He is the leader of the black mass club and, we see them at nighttime a lot, and in nighttime scenes and club scenes and things like that. We wanted everything to kind of play really nicely off the interior night lighting, which KK and I both did consistently. Something like this was just one of those things that just plays amazing with light when you’re indoors and at night. A lot of his looks kind of do that and, he’s a fashionista in his own right, for sure. “
Last but not least is Victor Zsasz, played by Chris Messina. “Zsasz is his right hand, he has this kind of, also kind of a street urchin vibe, I would say,” Benach said. “All of the goons and all of the people that surround Roman kind of have a style about them, including Zsasz that makes them feel like a gang, but they’re sort of like a very elevated, stylish gang. It’s sort of as Roman would want to happen around him.”
We’re excited to see how all this comes together in the final film, and thankfully we don’t have to wait too much longer. Birds of Prey hits theaters on February 7th, 2020.
