With the release of The Whale coming in December, Brendan Fraser has been on a promotional tour that includes many interviews with different outlets. In one of these interviews, the actor took the opportunity to joke about the cancellation of the Batgirl film.Batgirl was canceled by David Zaslav back in August, and its cancellation sparked a wild storm of speculation and condemnations by those who felt it was a callous move on Zaslav's part. Zaslav came aboard as CEO of Warner Bros. Following their acquisition by Discovery. The Batgirl film was set to star Leslie Grace in the starring role of Barbara Gordon, while Brendan Fraser was set to portray the villain Firefly. In an interview shared by DC Daily, Fraser was doing a press junket for The Whale when the interviewer asked him and his co-star what they would be up to after the release of The Whale. While Fraser's co-star gave an answer about theater, Fraser quickly answered, "Batgirl. Oh.," before staring into the camera and bursting into laughter. His 'forgetful' response sardonically and sarcastically referred to Batgirl's sudden and disappointing cancellation. Fraser jokingly had to remind himself to use his 'inside voice' rather than joke about the cancellation publicly.
Fraser's turn in The Whale is being highly praised. Directed by Darren Aronofsky, Fraser plays a 600-pound man who is attempting to reconnect with his seventeen-year-old daughter, played by Sadie Sink. By all accounts, the film is an emotional tale about a frayed relationship between father and daughter, and it has continued to make headlines following its premiere at the Venice Film Festival. The film marks Fraser's return to the big screen after a several-year sabbatical.
The Batgirl affair has been emotional. Responses have ranged wildly. Shang-Chi actor Simu Liu actually landed in a fair bit of hot water for joking about the Batgirl cancellation, with many calling his joke insensitive to the cast and crew who worked on the film. Fraser probably won't get a similar response, given that he actually starred in the film.
Fraser's response to the cancellation is the latest in the cast's reaction to the move. Batgirl star Ivory Aquino, who had portrayed Alysia Yeoh in the film and was set to play DC Film's first transgender character, wrote an emotional open letter to Zaslav via Twitter, asking him to release the film so that the hard work the cast put into the film could be enjoyed by audiences.
The Whale releases in theaters on December 9, 2022.
Source: DC Daily/Twitter