Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn) (2020)

[MarkHB]

Quote

You ever hear the one about the cop, the songbird, the psycho and the mafia princess? Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is a twisted tale told by Harley herself, as only Harley can tell it. When Gotham’s most nefariously narcissistic villain, Roman Sionis, and his zealous right-hand, Zsasz, put a target on a young girl named Cass, the city is turned upside down looking for her. Harley, Huntress, Black Canary and Renee Montoya’s paths collide, and the unlikely foursome have no choice but to team up to take Roman down.

Cast:

Margot Robbie : Harleen Quinzel / Harley Quinn

Mary Elizabeth Winstead : Helena Bertinelli / Huntress

Jurnee Smollett-Bell : Dinah Lance / Black Canary

Rosie Perez : Renee Montoya

Chris Messina : Victor Zsasz

Ewan McGregor : Roman Sionis / Black Mask

Ella Jay Basco : Cassandra Cain

 

Directed by Cathy Yan

Announced release date: February 7, 2020

[starri]

I somewhat can't stand the title.

[festivus]

I like the cast. I finally saw Suicide Squad last week and Harley was the only thing I liked about it. Also was the only reason I watched it.

[shantown]

2 hours ago, starri said:

I somewhat can't stand the title.

Same. Why didn't they just go simple with "Birds of Prey"? 

[scarynikki12]

1 hour ago, shantown said:

Same. Why didn't they just go simple with "Birds of Prey"? 

Harley’s not a member and there’s only speculation on Barbara Gordon’s involvement so just having that could potentially be misleading on two fronts. I don’t know that I would have gone with that particular title but it feels comic book-y which may be why it was chosen. 

[tennisgurl]

That title that makes me think of all the poor movie employees who have to put the names of movies up on the theater, who are reading that name and sighing deeply...

[scarynikki12]

13 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

That title that makes me think of all the poor movie employees who have to put the names of movies up on the theater, who are reading that name and sighing deeply...

They’ll just abbreviate it, hopefully to something amusing. 

[SimoneS]

I didn't think that Harley Quinn was so popular that putting her name in the title will send people flying into the theater, but good luck with that DCU. 

[MarkHB]

I should have posted this here initially... forgot I had created the thread! They wrapped shooting on April 15.

Also, for posterity... the original teaser.

[Danny Franks]

Ah, so this is a Harley Quinn movie, with a few guest characters? Seems fairly typical of DC's approach to these characters.

If they were going to make a Birds of Prey movie, it should have Oracle, Black Canary, Huntress and Lady Blackhawk, as the main characters (the clue is in the title, guys).

Edited May 7, 2019 by Danny Franks

[MarkHB]

An interview with Ella Jay Basco (Cassandra Cain)

Quote

What was it like working alongside Margot Robbie?

Margot is a phenomenal mentor and leader. She is the ultimate professional and takes charge like a boss. We would joke around set, rap to Cardi B, and make up silly hand games. Margot made work exciting and fun.  She was super collaborative.  When we rehearsed, she always made sure I was okay and asked me if I wanted to try something different.  It was definitely intimidating working alongside an A-list actor, but at the same time I was freaking out just meeting Margot. 

[WhitneyWhit]

I don't know how I feel about this. I can take or leave Harley but if they wanted her to have her own movie, they should have followed through on the original plan for a movie about the Sirens. As mentioned above, she isn't a Bird of Prey so it kinda feels like they shoe horned her in after the Sirens movie fell through.

[MarkHB]

There were rumors, and I have no idea how well-founded they are, that this could lead to a Harley trilogy of BoP, Gotham City Sirens, and Birds v Sirens.  Plus Harley's presence in the Suicide Squad franchise and all the other cool stuff Margot wants to do (none of which is a Pan Am reboot, alas).

[Sakura12]

I heard they let Margot Robbie choose which movie she wanted to do.  Gotham City Sirens and BoP. She choose the one where she'd be the most well known. Catwoman and Poison Ivy are well known outside comic book readers having been in previous movies. With them she'd be sharing the spotlight. Not many non comic book reader have ever heard of the Birds of Prey or who's on the team. Making her character the most well known and popular. 

It doesn't matter that Harley was never in the BoP, because the movie is not about them it's about Harley. I'm not at all excited to see this because of that. I wanted the BoP to get their own movie. I would've watched Gotham City Sirens, I loved their comic run with the villains living together and trying to be heroes and failing at it because of their many many issues. That would've been fun to see in live action. 

[ramble]

So going by what @Sakura12 mentioned above the title should be:  Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn) - a Margot Robbie project. 

[MarkHB]

7 hours ago, ramble said:

a Margot Robbie project.

She's been driving it from the get go; her company is producing it.  I think for better or worse, Margot owns movie Harley, at least for now.

[methodwriter85]

13 hours ago, MarkHB said:

She's been driving it from the get go; her company is producing it.  I think for better or worse, Margot owns movie Harley, at least for now.

It's pretty awesome, I think. She's not stupid- she knows that Harley Quinn was the best-received character from Suicide Squad and she's trying to capitalize on that.

Chris Messina is in this. Man, you got me with that one.

[MarkHB]

Apparently the German film review board has approved a new teaser for this movie... under 40 seconds so really short, but there are some stills out there.  I'd expect it soon.

[MarkHB]

Here's the teaser... it's only appearing in front of IT! and is not officially online (but there are high-quality leaks everywhere), so I'm spoiler-tagging it.

Spoiler

[Guest]

7 hours ago, MarkHB said:

Here's the teaser... it's only appearing in front of IT! and is not officially online (but there are high-quality leaks everywhere), so I'm spoiler-tagging it.

  Hide contents

It’s weird that it’s only in theaters since it gives nothing away except how heavily Harley will be featured. And that was already a given based on the title. 

I would normally be interested in a Birds of Prey movie but nothing about this appeals to me. 

[Bill1978]

My response to that was 'Whatever'. The trailer will need to be more Wonder Woman/Aquaman/Shazam and less that to convince me this this is a movie I need to check out.

[Spartan Girl]

20 hours ago, Bill1978 said:

My response to that was 'Whatever'. The trailer will need to be more Wonder Woman/Aquaman/Shazam and less that to convince me this this is a movie I need to check out.

Ditto.  As much as I liked Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, I know next to nothing about these other characters.  So, no thanks.

[thickplottens]

Harley was the only thing I really liked about Suicide Squad so I'm happy that she's getting another film, but I wish it was with the Gotham City Sirens instead of dumping her into the Birds of Prey.

[BetterButter]

[Trini]

Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn, also some Birds

They really could have had their Harley Quinn movie AND a lower budget Birds of Prey movie, but noooooo.

Anyway, I don't like the poster; looks like jokey fanart - which was probably the look they were going for. And they put Harley on there twice even as her image makes up most of the poster. Oy.

I assume a proper trailer will be released in the next week/s?

[scarynikki12]

1 hour ago, Trini said:

I assume a proper trailer will be released in the next week/s?

I bet it’s attached to Joker so later in the month. 

[Sakura12]

Why didn't they just call it Harley Quinn? What is the point of even having the BoP, they look nothing like their comic counterparts and are clearly playing second fiddle to her. If I didn't know the characters I wouldn't even know what the hell Birds of Prey even means. I also wouldn't be able tell who they are. 

Black Canary should have black wings and Huntress should have purple wings, to somewhat match their original outfits. That doesn't look like there was any care put into the BoP. It just looks like Margot Robbie wanted some unknown heroes in her movie so she can use the woman power theme and not have them overshadow her. With how plainly they are dressed she didn't even want them in their costumes in case that made the stand out. 

Edited September 17, 2019 by Sakura12

[Trini]

Character portraits from  DC's movie-related trade paperbacks:

[MarkHB]

The Wrap talked to Mary Elizabeth Winstead:

Quote

“She’s kind of an odd character… She’s weird, and funny and awkward,” Winstead said during a conversation about her upcoming film “Gemini Man,” in theaters Oct. 11. “You sort of get to tell this story of this girl who grew up training to be an assassin and didn’t ever have friends, and doesn’t know how to fit in socially, and doesn’t really know anything other than how to kill.

[Sakura12]

Here's some new Birds of Prey posters. They seem to be missing some people. 🙄

[Bill1978]

As an Aussie I should be super stoked with Margot Robbie's success and influence, but with every new bit of promo material released all I'm seeing is a major vanity project for her ego...which I didn't think she had.

[AimingforYoko]

31 minutes ago, Sakura12 said:

They seem to be missing some people.

Just the titular characters, nobody important.

[MarkHB]

Here they are...

[starri]

Don't they still have a solo Harley movie in the pipe?

Why didn't they just drop the pretense and do that?

[ruby24]

This feels to me like they didn't trust the idea of a solo Harley Quinn movie so they threw in some people to support her even though they really don't belong there (Harley Quinn has nothing to do with Birds of Prey).

I mean, Suicide Squad did well (at the box office, not with critics- and I'm not sure if people actually like it now or not) but it was a huge ensemble, so I guess they're not sure if this character carries a movie on her own.

[Trini]

6 hours ago, ruby24 said:

This feels to me like they didn't trust the idea of a solo Harley Quinn movie so they threw in some people to support her even though they really don't belong there (Harley Quinn has nothing to do with Birds of Prey).

I mean, Suicide Squad did well (at the box office, not with critics- and I'm not sure if people actually like it now or not) but it was a huge ensemble, so I guess they're not sure if this character carries a movie on her own.

DC knows how popular she is - she's like, everywhere. Including the face of this movie. So I don't know if that's the main reason.

My guess is that WB didn't want to pay for two female-led films that were kinda in the same universe, and Margot was willing to add BoP to her project.

[starri]

If they wanted to do a female team movie with Harley, they just should have done Gotham City Sirens.  That also has the advantage of characters who are way more familiar to the general public.

It's just...Birds of Prey is one of my favorite comics.  I am disinclined to see this specifically because we're actually getting Harley and her backup singers.

[MarkHB]

Here...  We... Go!

So far as the development of the film itself goes, apparently WB did its thing where it commissioned several scripts: BoP, Sirens, and the Joker v Harley film, this had the strongest script and they went with it. I've also heard that if this is successful they could pivot to a trilogy with Sirens followed by Birds vs Sirens.

[starri]

Hard pass.

[Dandesun]

5 hours ago, starri said:

If they wanted to do a female team movie with Harley, they just should have done Gotham City Sirens.  That also has the advantage of characters who are way more familiar to the general public.

It's just...Birds of Prey is one of my favorite comics.  I am disinclined to see this specifically because we're actually getting Harley and her backup singers.

I don't care about Harley. I've never cared about Harley. I despise this tarted up 'Daddy's Little Monster' design. And holy crap am I ever sick of the Joker. How many hot takes of this maniac can there be? Too many. Don't care. Birds of Prey mattered to me but this is a gigantic turn off.

I very seriously doubt I'll be seeing this in the theaters. None of it is getting me excited.

Also... was Ewan channeling his best Mark Hamill there? 'Cause it sounded like it.

Edited October 1, 2019 by Dandesun

[scarynikki12]

I’ll be the voice of dissent and say that it looks like a lot of fun. I think the movie itself will be more balanced between Harley, Dinah, and Helena so I don’t mind that the early promotion is focusing on Harley. The only real issue that I’m anticipating is if they really do leave out Barbara Gordon entirely (Babs and Dinah are one of my favorite friendships so I’m eager to see it on screen) but I’ll wait and see. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

2 hours ago, Dandesun said:

I don't care about Harley. I've never cared about Harley. I despise this tarted up 'Daddy's Little Monster' design. And holy crap am I ever sick of the Joker. How many hot takes of this maniac can there be? Too many. Don't care. Birds of Prey mattered to me but this is a gigantic turn off.

I very seriously doubt I'll be seeing this in the theaters. None of it is getting me excited.

Also... was Ewan channeling his best Mark Hamill there? 'Cause it sounded like it.

 

[Sakura12]

They probably could've called it the Harley Quinn movie and had the BoP show up.  With their name first in the title I would've expected them to be featured in the trailer. They were not called out by name or given any real scenes to showcase them. Everything was still all about Harley. 

[Spartan Girl]

Couldn't we just get The Lego Batman Movie 2 instead?!

[Zuleikha]

This is really The Fantabulous Emancipation of the One Harley Quinn, and I'm completely okay with that, as long as we actually get the fantabulous emancipation of one Harley Quinn. 

I just want it to do right by the characters it is using and the story it is telling. I like the Birds of Prey and would have been happy to see a true Birds of Prey movie, too. But I plan to judge this as a story on its own terms and not judge it by what it could also have been.

[Danny Franks]

Why can't DC just make sensible adaptations of their comic book material, instead of constantly trying to find new, edgy or offbeat takes? The Birds of Prey were a really cool idea - a small group of superheroines, brought together by a woman who could no longer do the superheroing herself (thanks to yet more Joker bullshit), to fight crime and improve their own self image/mental health/personal lives as part of the gig.

Harley Quinn was not one of them. Hell, Cass Cain wasn't even one of them, although she could have been.

This adaptation, as far as I can tell, does not have Oracle in it at all. What a bizarre choice to make. Why not just do a Harley Quinn movie, with Poison Ivy and maybe Catwoman?

Edited October 4, 2019 by Danny Franks

[MarkHB]

Today's DC Daily has a BoP cast interview from NYCC:

[dmeets]

Nice of them to allow the extras to stand and talk alongside Margot Robbie!

[SimoneS]

On 10/4/2019 at 5:38 PM, Danny Franks said:

Why can't DC just make sensible adaptations of their comic book material, instead of constantly trying to find new, edgy or offbeat takes? The Birds of Prey were a really cool idea - a small group of superheroines, brought together by a woman who could no longer do the superheroing herself (thanks to yet more Joker bullshit), to fight crime and improve their own self image/mental health/personal lives as part of the gig.

Harley Quinn was not one of them. Hell, Cass Cain wasn't even one of them, although she could have been.

This adaptation, as far as I can tell, does not have Oracle in it at all. What a bizarre choice to make. Why not just do a Harley Quinn movie, with Poison Ivy and maybe Catwoman?

IKR?! There is just something off about DCEU. You would think that they would learn after the success of Christian Bale's Batman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman. They should just make straightforward adaptations. 

[Trini]

I think this is a new promo photo?

Anyway, I just realized how stupid Harley's outfit is - a zipper down the front of overalls?? Why put her in overalls at all, if you wanted to show her midriff? /casual fashion nerd

Edited October 31, 2019 by Trini