Joss Whedon in discussions to direct Batgirl movie

Variety is reporting that Joss Whedon is nearing a deal to be the writer, director and producer of a solo Batgirl movie for Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment.

Whedon is no stranger to big-time superhero moviemaking, having written and directed the first two “Avengers” movies for Marvel Studios. Those films proved that connected superhero movie universes could work, and now Whedon joins WB/DC in their attempts to duplicate the success of Marvel Studios.

With Gal Gadot set to star in “Wonder Woman,” arriving in theaters in June, and David Ayer developing “Gotham City Sirens,” which will star Margot Robbie in a repeat performance as Harley Quinn teaming up with an as-yet-not-cast Catwoman and Poison Ivy, a Batgirl movie would represent WB/DC’s third film to feature a female lead, giving DC Entertainment at least one thing at which it has beaten Marvel Studios. Marvel Studios’ first movie with a female lead arrives March 8, 2019, when Academy Award winner Brie Larson stars as Captain Marvel.

Batgirl/Barbara Gordon (daughter of mainstay Batman character and Gotham City Police Commissioner Jim Gordon) has gone through a reinvention in the pages of her comic books, with DC Comics’ latest two companywide reboots, “The New 52” and “Rebirth,” debuting a much younger, hipster-styled Batgirl with a less bat-in-thedark and more bright-and-inyour-face costume that was met with high fan approval.