The Batgirl situation has obviously been extremely unpleasant for the cast and crew of the movie who'd spent months giving their all to the project, just for Warner Bros. Discovery to shelve its release in post-production. In recent days, reports have emerged that studio heads will be holding some "funeral screenings" of the final cut of Batgirl before locking the footage away in the vault, never to be seen again. And this news has been especially hard on one of the film's stars, Ivory Aquino.
Aquino, a transgender actress, would have made history with her role in the film as Alysia Yeoh, the best friend and roommate of Barbara Gordon (Leslie Grace). Very unhappy to see the movie getting scrapped, Aquino took to Twitter to plead for Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslov to feel for the cast and crew of Batgirl by moving forward with the film's release. Directly addressing Zaslov and referring to an article she'd read about the "funeral screenings," Aquino described how emotional the experience has been.
"As much as I’ve tried my best to be strong these past few weeks, I’d find myself crying, for lack of a better term, from grief, and tonight was one of those nights," Aquino said in her Twitter thread. "As much as Batgirl has been labeled a woke film, it simply came together that way because of writing that reflects the world we live in. For me, more than anything, it is a father-daughter story which hits close to home as my Dad passed a year ago, shortly before I booked this project, and I was hoping it would resonate with other children around the world, grown and not-so-grown, who hold their fathers in the highest esteem and who could see Batgirl as a story of that special bond."
Aquino added, "I’ve found myself not being able to talk about this ordeal with anyone. I realized that no one, apart from those involved with the film, would truly understand what we’re feeling. And talking about it with my castmates, I feel, might be akin to rubbing salt on a still-open wound. My heart goes out to Leslie Grace and our beloved directors and entire crew & cast who spent months dedicating their all to this endeavor. Leslie checked in on me the day we found out of the shelving and only had words of comfort and support. I’ve dared not ask since if she’s spent nights holding back tears like I have because she has had to be the face of our Batgirl family and has had to put on a brave face as a way of taking care of us the way she gracefully steered our film."
Batgirl Getting Axed Was Heartbreaking
Aquino goes on to explain how she spoke with a close friend about her feelings which helped put things into perspective. She compares the situation to a company head serving as a large cog atop increasingly smaller cogs underneath. Aquino suggests that one movement that seems small from the large cog can have a detrimental effect on the smaller cogs. Aquino hopes that this stresses the point that this decision means a great deal more than Zaslov realizes.
"I do know and ask, with something like Batgirl that’s a product of our hearts and souls, that the little cogs not simply be seen as widgets whose fates are determined by an equation to benefit the bottom line," Aquino says. "More than widgets, we are fellow human beings and artists who, when given the chance, can outperform the equation and multiply the bottom line exponentially. If a month ago, there wasn’t a marketing budget for Batgirl, I’d venture to say that that has been taken care of by the turn of events these past few weeks."
No matter what happens, however, Aquino is very grateful for the support she has gotten from fans. She hopes that it will help prove to Zaslov that the right thing to do is to reverse course and release Batgirl after all.
"We’ve been fortunate to have such amazing supporters since the beginning, from Glasgow where we filmed and from all over the world," Aquino notes. "Now, more people know about our labor of love and are eager to see the movie. I do hope you get to read this letter. Consider releasing Batgirl. She’s always been an underdog and has nowhere to go but up."