Joss Whedon Says What Inspired Him To Write Batgirl Movie

The announcement that Joss Whedon would write, direct, and produce a standalone Batgirl movie for DC was huge for the struggling studio, which has debuted a series of films to big box office returns but bad reviews from critics.

The Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator made the jump from Marvel for the film, and he said that it was the character of Batgirl that convinced him to make the leap.

"She came up, and I started getting obsessed with how a young woman could get hardcore enough to need to put on the cowl," he told The Hollywood Reporter at the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 premiere. "Like, what's her damage? 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–to pick up this life? How intense and driven that person is... I just couldn't stop thinking about it."

Many have theorized that her "damage" in Whedon's version draws from the New 52 version of the character, where Barbara Gordon (daughter of Commissioner Gordon) has experimental surgery to recover from a severe spinal injury given to her by the Joker. While Whedon kept mum on rumors that he'll follow the New 52 version of the character, he did tell THR that he's unsure if he'll use one of the more notable aspects of her new costume: knee-high, yellow Doc Martens. "I have a lot of voices in my head," he said.

Whedon also revealed that he hasn't started thinking about casting yet because he is still getting a grip on the character. But he did say that he doesn't think that a big-name actress will end up in the highly coveted part. There's no release date set yet for the Batgirl movie, but viewers can get some early hints on the movie's plot by reading up on the character's untold truth.