A new report reveals that a fan-favorite Batman character will be joining the upcoming Birds of Prey film starring Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn.
The report from Deadline indicates that Cassandra Cain will be joining the film.
Cassandra Cain’s History
Cain was created by Kelley Puckett and Damion Scott. She first appeared in Batman #567 in 1999. The character was originally the daughter of David Cain and Lady Shiva and underwent rigorous training where she was not allowed to speak or have any human contact. The only language that she was taught was the language of body language. It made her an expert martial artist and a lethal assassin. However, she would become an expert martial artist.
The character was originally an agent of Oracle and helped the city after it was by a massive earthquake. She would eventually go on to save Comissioner Gordon and was given permission by Oracle aka Barbara Gordon to become Batgirl.
In the most recent iteration of the character, Cain operates as Orphan, one of the members of Batman’s team that is used to safeguard Gotham against all kinds of threats. She has also learned how to speak, although she is still extremely socially awkward. Given her extreme physical prowess, she attempts to go it alone, but quickly finds out she needs the help of her teammates including Clayface, Tim Drake, Harper Row, Batwoman, and even at one point Black Lightning.
Cassandra Cain’s Role in Birds of Prey
It will be interesting to see what role Cassandra Cain plays in the film. It’s quite possible she could be one of the film’s primary antagonists given her character’s history being a lethal assassin. It’s possible she is still being used and abused as an assassin and the Birds of Prey figure out a way to break through her conditioning and convert her into one of their members. Maybe Cain is contracted as an assassin to take out Gotham’s Maid of Mischief aka Harley Quinn. Quinn somehow gets Huntress and Black Canary to interfere and prevent her imminent death by convincing Cain she’s working for the bad guys. The four of them could then team up to take down whoever was targeting Harley Quinn. And if the most popular rumor is true that could be Black Mask.
With Cain involved she would make a perfect foil for the flamboyant and crazy Harley Quinn given she’s the quite serious type. I can definitely see some good opportunities for some dark situational humor given the film will have an R rating.
What do you think Cassandra Cain’s role in Birds of Prey will be? Could she still be a trained assassin? Or has she taken on the role of Batgirl and is already operating in Gotham?