Will Smith Reached Out to Batgirl Directors Following Cancellation

Warner Bros. Discovery was going through a transition phase soon after their merger, and newly appointed CEO David Zaslav has spent the time since changing the way the company does business. One of Zaslav's main objectives was to revamp his DC Comics projects and have them all be produced under one house, DC Studios. He would put James Gunn and Peter Safran in charge of the new studio, but before any of this, Zaslav canceled a major DC movie. Back in August of 2022, Zaslav chose to cancel the already-filmed Batgirl movie that was being helmed by Adil El Arbi and Billal Fallah (Bad Boys for Life, Ms. Marvel) and starred Leslie Grace (In the Heights). El Arbi and Fallah have previously worked with Will Smith on the last Bad Boys movie, and it seems that they've built a great friendship. Smith was going through some pretty bad press after slapping Chris Rock at last year's Academy Awards and didn't make any appearances except for the premiere of his latest film, Emancipation. According to Variety, it seems that Smith made time to go to El Arbi's wedding back in August and gave them words of encouragement after Batgirl was canceled.

"It was two days after the wedding, and Will Smith was there. He was like, 'What's happening? Oh my God,'" El Arbi revealed to the trade. "And he said, 'Really, don't worry about it. Just one tip. Don't go on social media.'"

What is the Next Big Film Being Released by DC Studios?

The next big movie the studios has coming out will be Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line describe the film as follows: "Bestowed with the powers of the gods, Billy Batson and his fellow foster kids are still learning how to juggle teenage life with having adult Super Hero alter-egos. But when the Daughters of Atlas, a vengeful trio of ancient gods, arrive on Earth in search of the magic stolen from them long ago, Billy—aka Shazam—and his family are thrust into a battle for their superpowers, their lives, and the fate of their world. 

Shazam! Fury of the Gods stars returning cast members Zachary Levi (Thor: Ragnarok) as Shazam; Asher Angel (Andi Mack) as Billy Batson; Jack Dylan Grazer (It Chapter Two) as Freddy Freeman; Adam Brody (Promising Young Woman) as Super Hero Freddy; Ross Butler (Raya and the Last Dragon) as Super Hero Eugene; Meagan Good (Day Shift) as Super Hero Darla; D.J. Cotrona (G.I. Joe: Retaliation) as Super Hero Pedro; Grace Caroline Currey (Annabelle: Creation) as Mary Bromfield / Super Hero Mary; Faithe Herman (This Is Us) as Darla Dudley; Ian Chen (A Dog's Journey) as Eugene Choi; Jovan Armand ("Second Chances") as Pedro Pena; Marta Milans (White Lines) as Rosa Vasquez; Cooper Andrews (The Walking Dead) as Victor Vasquez; with Djimon Hounsou (A Quiet Place Part II) as Wizard. Joining the cast are Rachel Zegler (West Side Story), with Lucy Liu (Kung Fu Panda franchise) and Helen Mirren (F9: The Fast Saga)."

The film is being directed by David F. Sandberg (Shazam!, Annabelle: Creation) and produced by Peter Safran. Fury of the Gods was written by Henry Gayden and Chris Morgan. Shazam! Fury of the Gods hits theater on March 17th!

What do you think about this? Are you sad that Batgirl was canceled? Let us know in the comments below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!