DC's live-action universe has had a fascinating tenure on the silver screen, and it's showing no signs of slowing down. Warner Bros. has announced a ton of potential projects for the DCEU, with a handful of movies being actively developed by the studio. While Aquaman and Shazam! will be in theaters before we know it, DC is moving forward with its R-rated Birds Of Prey movie.
The cast and crew of Birds of Prey (if that is even the title) is slowly being assembled, with a trio of actresses recently announced to be joining Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn in the upcoming blockbuster. But the femme fatales will need an enemy to battle, with reports indicating that Batman villain Black Mask would be the big bad of the movie. And now it looks like Ewan McGregor is going to sign on to play the rogue mob boss.
This latest report comes from The Wrap, which indicated that Ewan McGregor is in final negotiations to take on the role of Black Mask in Birds of Prey. McGregor had been previously rumored to be on the short list for the villain, and now it looks like it's only a matter of time before we get another one of DC's big announcements.
Ewan McGregor seems like a brilliant choice to play Black Mask, if only for the relationship he has with nerd culture and iconic properties. McGregor is perhaps best known for playing Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequels, and giving a spirited performance that saved some otherwise cringeworthy scenes. He's stayed busy with high profile projects like Christopher Robin and FX's Fargo, so he'd bring significant star power to the Birds of Prey.
Bringing on Ewan McGregor as Black Mask is also an interesting choice, because the 47 year old actor doesn't typically play villains. His natural charisma and charm usually result in him playing good guys, so it should be fascinating to see McGregor inhabit an inherently darker persona. But the overall plot and Black Mask's role in Birds of Prey are still a mystery, as its cast continues to be assembled.
In the DC comics, Black Mask is a brutal mob boss who is often trying to acquire more power and money within Gotham City. This often puts him at odds with Batman and his Bat-family. It doesn't appear that Ben Affleck's Batman will appear in Birds of Prey, so it looks like that's how Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) will likely come into the narrative. DC fans are also hoping that Batgirl might pop up throughout the course of the movie, although DC's plans are a mystery at this point.
Birds of Prey is currently set to arrive in theaters on February 7th, 2020. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.
