Joss Whedon in talks to write and direct Batgirl movie for DC

IF DC is going to save itself from the string of misses that plagues its universe, it’s going to need a saviour. Happily, Joss Whedon is available.

IF ANYONE is going to save Warner Bros. from completely tanking its DC Extended Universe, surely it will be king of the nerds Joss Whedon.

Whedon, whose first claim to fame was creating Buffy the Vampire Slayer, is in talks to write, direct and produce a standalone Batgirl feature for Warner Bros, according to Variety.

Whedon famously declared himself exhausted and beaten after the release of Avengers: Age of Ultron in 2015 and hasn’t released any projects since.

Signing up with DC will be a big score for Warner Bros. as Whedon will essentially be a defector from main rival, Marvel Studios and Disney.

While Whedon walked away from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he remains a producer on Marvel TV show Agents of Shield, which he co-created with his brother Jed and Maurissa Tanchereon.

Variety reported that no other producer is attached to a Batgirl project which only took form last month.

Batgirl, popular since her comic inception in the sixties, has never headlined her own film or TV series.

The character is currently in cinemas as a Lego figurine in T he Lego Batman Movie, voiced by Rosario Dawson. The last high-profile live-action Batgirl was portrayed by Alicia Silverstone in the 1997 Batman & Robin.

Whedon was attached to an aborted Wonder Woman film over 10 years ago.

It’s too early to tell if Batgirl will be introduced in her own standalone film or if she will cameo in one of the other DC Extended Universe films first, as many of the other DCEU characters have done.

After three releases, the DCEU has yet to capture the same acclaim as Marvel’s more established oeuvre. Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: The Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad’s reviews have ranged between woeful and mediocre at best.

Whedon’s experienced and steady hand at the helm of a DCEU project may be exactly what the franchise needs to kick it into gear. Notably, Whedon is known for blending humour with pathos and much of the criticism levelled at DCEU has focused on the films’ dreadful lack of levity.

Over 10 years ago, Whedon was attached to a potential Wonder Woman film but the project was eventually aborted.

Whedon’s other credits include Buffy spin-off Angel, the short-lived but beloved Firefly and its film sequel Serenity, Dollhouse, Much Ado About Nothing and the first Avengers film, as well as the writer of numerous comic books including a run at Astonishing X-Men series.

The next DCEU film to be released will be Wonder Woman which will hit cinemas in Australia on June 1.

Continue the conversation on Twitter with @wenleima.

Lego Batgirl is currently hamming it up in cinemas.

Originally published as Joss Whedon in talks to write and direct Batgirl movie for DC