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Director Joss Whedon (right) on the set of Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015).

From Marvel to DC: Avengers director Joss Whedon to direct a stand-alone Batgirl movie

Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator will write, direct and produce first stand-alone Batgirl movie, which will ride on the character’s revival in a 2014 comics series hailed for being fun and younger looking

Batgirl is getting her own solo movie from Joss Whedon.

The Los Angeles Times has confirmed that Whedon is closing in on a deal to write, direct and produce an untitled stand-alone Batgirl film for Warner Bros. as part of its DC Extended Universe. The news was first reported by Variety.

This would be Batgirl’s very first solo movie, as well as the DC Extended Universe’s second film starring a female lead after Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, which hits cinemas on June 2.

The most well-known incarnation of Batgirl made her comic book debut in 1967 in The Million Dollar Debut of Batgirl! (Detective Comics No. 359) by writer Gardner Fox and artist Carmine Infantino. The story introduced Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Gotham Police Commissioner James Gordon, who just happens to moonlight as the masked crime fighter Batgirl.

Batgirl’s revival in a 2014 comics series, drawn by Christian Wildgoose, lies behind Whedon’s Batgirl project.

Batgirl’s comic book debut coincided with her introduction to the 1960s Batman TV series, where she was played by Yvonne Craig, ka-powing alongside Batman (Adam West) and Robin (Burt Ward).

While various interpretations (and incarnations) of Batgirl have made their marks over the years, the character’s recent resurgence in popularity is linked to 2014’s Batgirl of Burnside comics reboot by Brenden Fletcher, Cameron Stewart and Babs Tarr.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon is surrounded by vampires during the taping of the final episode of the cult comedy-horror series in 2003. Photo: AP

Fletcher, Stewart and Tarr’s run of Batgirl saw Barbara Gordon juggling life as a Ph.D. student with crime fighting. The series was praised for its fun, younger and brighter energy, as well as the character’s new stylish yet functional look. If this is the version of the character that Whedon turns to, the movie could inject some much-needed light into the dark and gritty DC Extended Universe.

Fan favourite Whedon, of course, is known for creating Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and Dollhouse.

The cast of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, which Whedon co-created. Photo: Bob D’Amico/TVB
This Batgirl movie would see Whedon jumping from the Marvel Cinematic Universe to DC. Whedon directed 2012’s The Avengers and 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron as well as helping create the Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series.

No other producers are currently attached to the Batgirl project, which originated in the last month. Warner Bros. Pictures Group’s chief content officer, Toby Emmerich, is overseeing with Jon Berg and Geoff Johns.

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