DC Studios has faced several up-and-down battles leading up to the “changing of the guard” with James Gunn and Peter Safran. The studio originally chose to entrust the DC Universe to 300 director Zack Snyder. Yet, when his creative vision did not rake in Marvel Studios-like financial returns or fan reception, they severely changed the cinematic universe’s tone, direction, and cohesiveness. This would become the kryptonite for the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) as multiple projects were halted indefinitely. The biggest victim of it all has been Batgirl.

When the newly assembled Warner Bros. Discovery executives chose to hire James Gunn and Peter Safran to be the chiefs of DC Studios, this would effectively hit the reset button on this viable brand. This would lead to a major culling of the DCEU, which would then be remade into the DC Universe or DCU. Here are the most significant changes made at the start of the Gunn/Safran era:

- Henry Cavill removed as the cinematic Superman
- Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 3 being postponed
- Ben Affleck removed as Batman

- Ezra Miller no longer returning as The Flash
- Shazam, Aquaman and Blue Beetle‘s futures postponed indefinitely

- Solo Michael Keaton Batman Beyond movie was cancelled
- Other cancelled projects – Gotham City Sirens, Solo Jared Leto Joker movie, Green Lantern Corps. TV series, Justice League 2, Solo Batfleck film, Man of Steel 2, New Gods, and the Wonder Twins.

While the scrapping of future projects is not an unheard of strategy for major studios, it is unusual when a nearly completed $90 million franchise is axed completely. This would be the fate of the Batgirl movie. The decision stemmed from the financial reformation at Warner Bros. Discovery in which Batgirl‘s demise was a tactic to be used as a tax write-off.

Batgirl directors, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (Ms. Marvel) would state that they were saddened and shocked by the news. They praised the cast and crew for a tremendous job as they brought Batgirl to life. The DC fanbase was also gobsmacked as a fan campaign arose to release Batgirl, a la the Snyder Cut of Justice League.

Unfortunately, the drama surrounding Batgirl has had a resurgence as an extra from the canceled blockbuster is suing Warner Bros. Discovery for irreparable, almost fatal injuries caused by a failed motorcycle stunt.

Cristina Stanovici was hired to act as a bystander during a late-night motorcycle stunt in Glasgow, Scotland. She claims that she was not given a proper mark of where to be as she was hit by the camera mounted to the cycle. The high-speed collision was so severe that she was immediately rushed to the hospital. Stanovici suffererd a broken thigh, hip, pelvis, shin, thumb and a skull gash which required multiple stitches.

All of her injuries would necessitate several hours of surgery as doctors battled to save her life. Once Stanovici recovered, she decided to take legal action against Warner Bros. executives responsible for ensuring the safety of the cast. Aside from financial compensation, the recovering engineer by trade wants to ensure that safety conditions will be improved for future projects.
A spokesperson from Stanovici’s casting agency, Casting Collective expressed that, “We wish Cristina well in her continuing recovery. As the matters are in the hands of her lawyers and are receiving attention from the film company involved, it isn’t appropriate for us to comment further.”
Warner Bros. Discovery has yet to comment on the lawsuit.
Is her lawsuit valid? How much should her compensation be for her injuries?