One of the downsides of media outlets reporting about casting before film studios actually officially announce things is that sometimes things get mixed up. Case in point— the news about Brendan Fraser signing on to star as the villain in “Batgirl.” Sure, the actor is likely joining the cast, but there’s more to the story than just that and initial reports seemed to get a key bit of news wrong.
READ MORE: ‘Batgirl’: Brendan Fraser Joins The HBO Max Movie As A Villain, Possibly Firefly
According to THR reporter Borys Kit, the news about Brendan Fraser’s casting in the upcoming “Batgirl” HBO Max film is a bit incomplete. You see, Fraser is in the cast of the upcoming film. And he is playing a villain. But reports that the actor is portraying the pyro-obsessed Firefly is possibly not accurate. Instead, it appears he will be playing classic Batman villain/gangster, Carmine Falcone.
Adding to the interest about this bit of news is the fact that Sylvester Stallone is reportedly the actor that the “Batgirl” filmmakers went to before Fraser to play the part. And after “things just didn’t work out,” Fraser was added to the cast.
Carmine Falcone is a Batman villain that is no stranger to feature films. He was an integral part of Christopher Nolan’s “Batman Begins,” where he was portrayed by Tom Wilkinson. And Falcone is expected to appear in the upcoming “The Batman,” where John Turturro will take over the role. So, needless to say, his addition to “Batgirl” is far from a shock, as Falcone is the sort of go-to gangster character to use in Gotham City stories.
“Batgirl” doesn’t yet have a release date, but the film is expected to star Leslie Grace as the title character and will be directed by the duo of Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah.