The industry was stunned yesterday by Warner Bros’ total shelving of “Batgirl.” Was the film that bad that it needed to be put in the Warner vault, never to be seen? Is it a cursed movie that kills you seven days after having seen it, ala “The Ring”?
It turned out that the film’s shelving had to do with tax returns. That’s right, Variety’s reporting that Warner Bros. scrapped “Batgirl” not just because they didn’t like it, but because it made sense from a tax write-down standpoint, scared the bejesus out of creatives in Tinseltown.
Apparently the tax returns will allow them to make their budget back if they don’t release it. This tax return default could very well be something other studios copy in the future. I’m just warning you.
Also, don’t buy Warners’ excuse that test screenings were poor. As per THR, “Batgirl‘s test score, which was a director’s cut, is comparable to tests for the first It (2017), which wound up grossing $700.3 million globally, as well as an early test for the upcoming Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Both of those films tested in the 60s.”
Now we have someone, whom I’ve verified as credible, posting on the HE forums, claiming he’s seen a cut of “Batgirl” and that it didn’t deserve Warners’ axing.
“This is incredible- I've seen an early cut and it is a fun film. Very sexy like Yvonne Craig, very Gotham-centric, downtown Glasgow evokes Gotham like the final shots in the Necropolis of “The Batman”. Direction feels like early [Michael] Bay, there is no sense of space, but great fights, I dunno, FUN.”