Crime’s about to spike in Gotham

Warner Bros. Discovery announced earlier this week that Batgirl won’t be released on any platform, despite the movie being nearly completed with a $90 million budget… an “almost unheard of” move, per the WSJ. The film, starring Leslie Grace, Michael Keaton, J.K. Simmons, and Brendan Fraser, was previously scheduled to be sent directly to HBOMax next year without a theatrical release.

💰 Driving the move… According to the WSJ, the cancellation reflects the company’s desire to find cost savings, pay down the newly-merged company’s hefty debt load, and undo some parts of the previous regime’s programming strategy, especially plans to produce original films for HBOMax without releasing them in theaters.

• WBD is in the midst of implementing a broad cost-cutting plan, and has pledged to find more than $3 billion in savings in 2023.

🤔 One interesting thing: By shelving the movie entirely instead of releasing it on HBOMax, the company is able to take a tax write-down that’s reportedly seen as the most financially sound way to recoup some of the costs. However, doing so means they can’t monetize the film at all.

🚫 Zoom out: Batgirl wasn’t the only WBD movie to get the axe on Tuesday. Scoob!: Holiday Haunt, a sequel to the 2020 film Scoob!, was also given its final Scooby Snack.