Batgirl decision 'not Glasgow's fault' says Susan Aitken and £150k grant not paid out to Warner Bros

The decision to shelve the Batgirl movie has “nothing to do with Glasgow”, the city’s council has said.

The DC film, which was set to star Michael Keaton, Brendan Fraser, JK Simmons and Leslie Grace, reportedly cost an estimated £57.6m.

The council also clarified that a £150,000 grant that was set to be given to the movie’s producers was not paid out.

It comes after the movie, which was filmed entirely in the Scottish city, was shelved over “poor” reception in test screenings.

The council leader, Susan Aitken, told STV News the decision was “very disappointing”.

Filming of the blockbuster, which was set for a 2022 release on the HBO Max streaming service, saw parts of Glasgow closed off and transformed into Gotham City for the multi-million pound production.

Aitken said: “There’s no reason to suggest that there won’t be more film productions coming to Glasgow. We did agree to give that grant and we’re still in discussions with Warner Brothers around that.

“Listen, it’s very disappointing obviously. The film itself seems to have been a victim of corporate mergers and issues. It’s nothing to do with Glasgow, it’s absolutely nothing to do with the city. It’s entirely to do with mergers of Warner Brothers between Warner Brothers and Discovery.”

A Glasgow City Council spokesman said: “The filming of Batgirl brought a very significant economic benefit to Glasgow when the production was here, with 450 Glasgow-based crew jobs, almost 1300 Scottish supporting artists, and many subcontractors working as tradespeople and in traffic management and security.

“Any decision on the release of the production is very much a matter for Warner Bros. The £150,000 grant support has not been paid, and discussions continue with the producers.”