While the female-led DC superhero outing Birds of Prey from Warner Bros. has yet to make any public casting announcements besides Margot Robbie reprising her role as Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad there has already been talk about who the studio may cast for certain roles, Heroic Hollywood reports.
Currently, Warner Bros. has expressed interest in casting a biracial actress to portray classic team regular, Black Canary. The shortlist for potential actresses has yet to surface, but people are safe to speculate who the studio may consider for DC’s stunning siren of justice. If this is the case then this would be a positive forward for stronger racial representation in cinema and the comic book movie sub-genre. Traditionally, both iterations of Black Canary, Dinah Drake and Dinah Lance have been white females but the studio is hoping to further diversify the team of superheroines and Black Canary’s first big screen outing.
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There is precedent for this casting decision, which may have had an impact on Warner Bros. decision to pursue a biracial Black Canary instead of the traditionally caucasian one that fans have known for decades. The CW‘s Arrow debuted it’s third iteration of the Black Canary during it’s fifth season, portrayed by biracial actress Juliana Harkavy. Since then Harkavy’s Dinah Drake has been received positively by fans who have felt she’s added an important dynamic that was missing after Katie Cassidy’s Dinah Laurel Lance was killed in the fourth season and became an antagonist via her Earth-2 counterpart, Black Siren. They are likely seeking to have similar results on the big screen as well as on the small screen.
An inside source close to the project stated that Cathy Yan and the studio is looking for a world-weary Black Canary who has the ability to sing. Singer Lady Gaga was reportedly approached for the role but she declined and the studio opted for a more progressive direction instead.
Not much is known about the upcoming Birds of Prey film outside of the roster of characters that are set to appear in it. Black Canary will make her big screen debut alongside Huntress, Cassandra Cain, and Renee Montoya with Batman rogue, Black Mask as the primary antagonist.
Actress and producer Margot Robbie has stated that she and the studio have always envisioned the project as an R-rated girl gang that features her reprising her role from 2016’s Suicide Squad. Birds of Prey will mark her second appearance as Harley Quinn in the DC Extended Universe, which she will be producing under her own production company LuckyChap Entertainment.
Sundance winner Cathy Yan (Dead Pigs) was tapped to direct Birds of Prey earlier this year. Since the film’s announcement it has had multiple scripts developed for it that have been centered heavily around Batgirl and Harley Quinn, which suggests that they will hold the biggest roles in the film. Bumblebee writer Christina Hodson has written a script that has reportedly been received well by executives. Warner Bros. is looking to start rolling cameras on Birds of Prey early next year.
The Birds of Prey first appeared in Chuck Dixon’s Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey in 1995 and were portrayed as a globetrotting team of DC heroines consisting of the trio of Batgirl, Huntress, and Black Canary. Other notable members of the team have been Black Hawk, Hawk and Dove, Vixen, and even very briefly Poison Ivy during DC’s New 52 era.
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