After receiving poor reviews in test screenings, DC’s movie Batgirl has been scrapped by Warner Bros, but it’s not the only movie to be cancelled over the years.
The movie boasted a star studded cast, which featured the likes of Michael Keaton as Batman, Leslie Grace as Batgirl, J.K Simmons and Brendan Fraser. The film was reported to have cost up to $100 million to make, and was set to stream on HBO Max in late 2022.
However, feedback from the test screening was so poor that DC decided to scrap the movie altogether. According to the New York Post, Batgirl was so bad that it was deemed ‘irredeemable’ by a Hollywood source.
Filming took place in this past January, as Glasgow was transformed into Gotham City. Michael Keaton reprised his role of Batman for the movie, which was highly anticipated among fans.
Despite the embarrassment for DC studios, this is not the first time that a movie was made but was never released.
Cancelled Movies
The Fantastic Four
This 1994 Marvel movie was based on the comic with the same name. The film was ready to go, and was being heavily promoted by trailers and posters, it was even covering magazines.
But, the premiere was halted and the actors in the film were hit with a cease and desist letters. It turns out that the studios did not actually have the rights to release the film, as production did not start on the correct date. All posters and prints were destroyed, and the film vanished off the face of the earth.
Don’s Plum
This 2001 black and white film starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire. Filming took place 1995-1996 and was originally only supposed to be a short film. It was later edited into a feature length film without their knowledge.
Maguire and DiCaprio thought the film was so bad that they banned it from being released.
Hippie Hippie Shake
Hippie Hippie Shake was a biopic about Oz editor Richard Neville. The film was set to follow Neville and his girlfriend as they launched the London edition of the magazine in 1960. The film starred the likes of Cillian Murphy, Sienna Murphy and Chris O’Dowd and scored generally positive reviews.
It is unclear as to why the film was scrapped, with some crew members quitting during post production. Others think it was to do with portrayal of those on screen.
My Best Friend’s Birthday
This was supposed to be Quentin Tarantino’s first film. However, a fire at a film lab meant that a majority of the footage was destroyed.
The film is a comedy, and was directed, co-written, co-produced, edited and starred Tarantino himself. Parts of the surviving film have been shown, but the full feature has been lost forever.