While its still very much in its infancy, the DC Extended Universe hasn't stopped making major film announcements and plans for the next few years. One of the more exciting announcements that happened recently is news that Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Avengers director Joss Whedon will be helming a Batgirl film for the shared universe. But with Whedon currently involved with completing Zack Snyder's Justice League film, when exactly can we expect to see Barbara Gordon swinging through Gotham on the silver screen? We now have a better idea, as the writer/director will reportedly begin development for the film in 2018.
This exciting news comes to us from DC head honcho Geoff Johns, who spoke with IGN Live about the various projects that are coming to the DCEU over the next few years. Eventually the subject of the Bat-family was brought up, where Johns revealed the current timeline for Batgirl's development, saying:
But for Batman what I will say is that Batman is more than just Batman and, you know, it's been way too long since we've seen, you know, an expansion of that universe, and Batgirl -- we are doing Batgirl with Joss Whedon, it's going to be super exciting. He's going to start that next year, and that's just the start.
Well, that's pretty cut and dry. Joss Whedon and company will begin truly digging into the world of Batgirl next year, meaning that the film may be upon us sooner than we anticipated.
This announcement is particularly exciting for fans of DC's characters. Because while the DCEU has announced a bevy of intriguing projects, the timeline of the shared universe is very unclear. No one is quite sure when the future films will be upon us, as DC hasn't released a schedule of release dates yet. This is in stark transition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe's way of doing things, as the OG shared universe announces phases of films that span years at a time. We know exactly when each installment in the MCU is going to hit theaters, and DC should probably follow suit and give some confidence to the fandom.
That being said, even the biggest DC skeptic can't deny that Joss Whedon is a fantastic choice to direct a Batgirl film. Whedon has always had a fondness for strong female characters, which you can see from his various television projects. Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, and Dollhouse all contained badass ladies who weren't afraid to get their hands dirty and save the day. And on the silver screen, he helped Scarlett Johansson craft the role of Black Widow through the first two Avengers films.
The next installment in the DCEU will be Zack Snyder (and Joss Whedon's) Justice League, which will hit theaters on November 16th, 2017. In the meantime, check out our 2017 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
