Ivory Aquino has officially joined the cast of HBO Max’s ‘Batgirl’ as the first transgender character in a DC Comics Extended Universe feature film. Aquino stars in the upcoming ‘Batgirl’ film as Alysia Yeoh, the best friend and roommate of Barbara Gordon, a.k.a. Batgirl. The casting of Aquino is a tremendous leap for the LGBTQ+ community as the entertainment world is slowly but surely making strides at becoming more inclusive.
Ivory Aquino and her character Alysia Yeoh are both transgender, and this instance will mark the first time a DC Comics live-action feature film will have an openly trans character in its cast. Yeoh has been around for almost a decade as the character first appeared in a 2011 issue of “Batgirl,” written by Gail Simone and penciled by Ardian Syaf.
The news of Aquino possibly confirming her in the ‘Batgirl’ HBO Max cast was first leaked on January 19th. Leslie Grace(who stars as Barbara Gordon) posted an Instagram story with a photo that seemed to be from the film’s set. Grace posted the story tagged Aquino in the picture of two women crossing the street with the caption “Barbara and Alysia ??.”
Ivory Aquino has been confirmed by @lesliegrace via Instagram to be playing Alysia Yeoh!!! 🦇 #Batgirl https://t.co/1Chkg7JOAB pic.twitter.com/Pg5LfH1d5X
— Batgirl Film News (@BatgirlFilm) January 19, 2022
The rest of the ‘Batgirl’ HBO Max cast includes some famous names, including one comeback and two people in the Spiderman Multiverse. First, we have the major comeback as Brendan Fraser is the rumored main villain. Next, J.K. Simmons, who we recently saw in Spiderman: No Way Home, will star as Barbara’s father, Gotham City police commissioner Jim Gordon. Lastly, we have none other than the original Batman himself, Michael Keaton, returning to reprise his role as Bruce Wayne/ Batman. The wait to see Keaton in his reprising role won’t belong as we’ll end up seeing him be Batman in the upcoming movie The Flash starring Ezra Miller later this year.
Are you excited about the ‘Batgirl’ HBO Max movie? What are your thoughts about the DC Extended Universe? Be sure to comment down below. We’re always glad to hear from you here at The Nerd Stash.
