With Warner Bros. Discovery shelving Batgirl, the directors shared a message from Kevin Feige, the studio boss of Marvel Studios. The message was shared by one of the directors, Adil El Arbi, on his Instagram story, where the Marvel leader wished him well for his recent marriage and gave his support to him and co-director Bilall Fallah about the recent news about their DC film.
“My friends, I had to reach and let you know we are all thinking about you both,” he wrote in an email. “Because of the wonderful news about the wedding (congrats!) and the disappointing news about Batgirl. Very proud of you guys and all the amazing work you do and particularly on Ms. Marvel of course! Can’t wait to see what is next for you. Hope to see you soon.”
Kevin Feige supporting the Batgirl directors comes as no surprise. As said in his email, the two worked on Ms. Marvel. The debut of Marvel’s first Muslim superhero came to Disney Plus with Iman Vellani as the titled character. Arbi and Fallah directed the first episode, Generation Why, and the finale, No Normal. The character will return in next year’s The Marvels as a part of Phase 5 of the MCU.
When it comes to people in the industry giving the Batgirl directors support, Kevin Feige was not alone. The filmmakers thanked Edgar Wright and James Gunn for their love and support.
Kevin Feige supports Batgirl directors after movie gets axed
Production issues ballooned a low-budget film to $90 million. For a superhero flick, it is not big, but it was deemed unprofitable by the studio for theaters and too big of a budget to go to HBO Max. The Batgirl directors and cast were not told until it was revealed to the world. Arbi found out at his wedding in Morocco, where his filmmaking partner accompanied him. The sequel to 2020’s Scoob! with Scoob! Holiday Hunt was also axed.
The Batgirl directors are only in the middle of a shift at the studio. Layoffs will make room for a move to combine HBO Max and Discovery+ into one service. Not much is known about the unified platform, except it will arrive in the U.S. by the summer of 2023.
