There was plenty of shock but also joy at the recent news that Joss Whedon would be writing and directing a standalone Batgirl film.
Given that his filmography includes two Avengers movies, one would have thought he was exclusively team Marvel. But considering his track record in bringing to life strong female characters, could there really have been a better choice for the gig?
Opinion was divided amongst our readers when we ran a poll for potential actresses that could play the role. Now Joss Whedon has weighed in on the type of actress he sees being cast in the role.
“I doubt it’ll be a name, I think this is somewhere where you go and find Batgirl and then you cast her," he told Variety. "I mean, I’m not against movie stars, they’re great, but you need somebody who is just right. And a situation with this, the name carries a lot of weight so it’s not as critical. Definitely Vin Diesel."
Well, he can't go on making Fast and Furious movies forever. Whedon also shed some light on how he came to take on the project.
"She came up, and I started getting obsessed with how a young woman could get hardcore enough to need to put on the cowl. Like, what's her damage?" he told The Hollywood Reporter. "She didn't have her parents killed in an alley. Who is this person, who decides — rather than being forced to by their childhood trauma — decides to pick up this life?" he adds. "How intense and driven that person is... I just couldn't stop thinking about it."