Birds of Prey starring Margot Robbie is a recent development and could be another successful gamble for DC’s Extended Universe. In fact, so confident is Warner Bros., they might be planning a trilogy surrounding these characters — specifically “One Harley Quinn.”
A rumor, and it’s strictly a rumor, coming from Geeks WorldWide is that Birds of Prey will be followed by a Gotham City Sirens adaptation and then a feature film pitting the Sirens against the BOP. Both groups are affiliations of Harley. As a member of the Sirens, she runs with Poison Ivy and Catwoman; in the Birds of Prey, she works with heroes Black Canary, Huntress, and Batgirl. Conflict could naturally arise there and make for a three-movie arc easily — Ivy and Harley’s relationship has been depicted before and goes back years.
The strongest indication a trilogy could happen is the creative pull Margot Robbie has with her character and any projects involving Harley going forward. She has an interest in the Harley-Ivy dynamic and works closely with BOP director Cathy Yan and writer Christina Hodson.
There is a desire for more female-led comic book movies and more stories about dark anti-heroes. Wonder Woman, directed by Patty Jenkins, was a massive hit and Harley Quinn is the breakout character from David Ayer’s Suicide Squad. Even so, Warner Bros. could be getting ahead of itself.
Christopher Nolan’s [easyazon_link identifier=”B009JBWOU0″ locale=”US” tag=”boundingintocomics-20″]Dark Knight trilogy[/easyazon_link] and Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel were a major reset for DC at the movies. Despite a backlash against the latter (mostly for its climax), there was interest in where the studio would go from there. It went the expected route and tried emulating Marvel’s shared universe so it could build to Justice League, only without the patience or proper foundation. They made a ton of money and broke some records but firings, recuts, and delays show they are mistake-prone and far from organized. These same problems could plague productions further if Warner Bros. doesn’t get its act together.
Written by Bumblebee scribe Hodson, Birds of Prey is directed by Yan and other than Margot Robbie, stars Rosie Perez, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Chris Messina, and Ewan McGregor as Black Mask. It should hit theaters on February 7 next year.