Actor Brendan Fraser has had a career renaissance ever since he starred in Darren Aronofski’s The Whale. The film won him a much-deserved Oscar for Best Actor last year and he followed it up with a supporting role in Marin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. The legendary actor has the Josh Brolin-starrer Brothers in his slate of releases.
One of the biggest misses for the world is Fraser’s portrayal of the legendary Batman villain Firefly in the canceled DC film Batgirl. The film was produced before James Gunn’s takeover of DC Studios and reboot of the franchise. Fraser’s performance has been lauded, which excites fans on a potential return of the actor for Robert Pattinson’s The Batman 2.
Also read: Brendan Fraser’s MCU Debut is Long Overdue and 1 Character Would Be Absolutely Perfect for Him
Why Was Brendan Fraser’s Batgirl Canceled?
The cancelation of the Leslie Grace and Brendan Fraser starrer Batgirl is one of the most controversial decisions taken by Warner Brothers Discovery in a year that was filled with controversial decisions. The film was directed by the duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, who was known for directing Bad Boys for Life and episodes of Ms Marvel.
The film saw Brendan Fraser play the role of the popular villain Firefly, who is a known arsonist and is a formidable foe against Batman. Talking about his role in the film, Fraser spoke on The Howard Stern Show,
“It was a story about a guy who had been in the service and his benefits were cut, and he was very angry with the system and what else is he gonna do but burn it to the ground…You’ve also got some humanity to him and on top of that a screw loose cause you know he’s the bad guy, but is he really like all the best bad guys, you kinda like them a little bit…On paper, very, very good. I relished this part.”
In 2022, Batgirl was canceled by WB Discovery chief David Zaslav as a tax write-off. The film was in the post-production stage when it was canceled and put in a vault to never see the light of day. Despite the franchise getting a reboot with James Gunn’s new and improved franchise, the film does not seem to be getting a release anytime soon.
Brendan Fraser’s Firefly Could Feature In The Batman 2
The cancelation of Batgirl was a devastating blow for fans who were looking forward to Brendan Fraser’s portrayal of the iconic Firefly. In the comics, the character is a former pyrotechnic expert in the film industry who turns to a life of crime when he is struck with poverty. He encounters Batman when he starts robbing banks.
Firefly’s origin story and eventual villainy were apparently explored in Batgirl, adding a layer of realism and grittiness to the character. Director Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah revealed that the low-budget nature of their family pushed them to creatively go for a realistic and grounded take on Gotham and the characters of Batgirl. They showered huge praises for Brendan Fraser in an interview with Yahoo! Entertainment,
“It was really a blend between Nolan and Burton. Gotham City was a more realistic world, and the story was very straightforward and emotional. It was more of an actor’s movie without a lot of visual effects…People do love the Bat-family: they love Batgirl, they love Gotham City, they love Michael Keaton and Brendan Fraser gave an Oscar-worthy performance in the movie.”
Since Brendan Fraser is still one of the most beloved actors working in the industry right now and his performance as Firefly has no impact on the continuity of the DC universe, Matt Reeves’ The Batman – Part II would be the perfect universe for his Firefly to exist in. The sequel to Robert Pattinson’s acclaimed 2022 film has the sort of gritty realism that the Batgirl director also chose to explore in their film.
Being an Oscar winner and a Martin Scorsese alumnus certainly adds a lot of value to Fraser as a sought-after talent for the superhero franchise. With The Batman – Part II set to feature many more villains from Batman’s Rogues Gallery, there is an opportunity for Fraser to reprise her role in the popular franchise.
