J.K. Simmons seems to be gearing up to wear the police badge once more.
The Oscar-winning actor is in negotiations to reprise the classic Batman character Commissioner James Gordon in “Batgirl,” Warner Bros.’ feature for HBO Max that is casting up swiftly.
“In the Heights” star Leslie Grace will be donning the iconic Batsuit, as she’s just been cast as the titular superhero. “Bad Boys for Life” filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah are directing from a script by Christina Hodson, the DC mainstay behind “Birds of Prey” and the upcoming “The Flash.”
Gordon is one of the oldest and best-known characters in the Batman universe, having first shown up in the Dark Knight’s initial appearance in “Detective Comics: No. 27” in 1939. The most recent, well-known iterations of the character have made him the father of Barbara Gordon, Batgirl’s alias.
Simmons was cast as Gordon by Zack Snyder for 2017’s “Justice League” and appeared in added material for the filmmaker’s recently restored cut, “Zack Snyder’s Justice League.” In 2019, the actor said in an interview with Entertainment Tonight that he had signed on to play the role for three movies and hoped to return to the character at one point.
“I hope there’s more of that in the future,” Simmons said. It looks like Bat-wishes can come true.”
Gary Oldman is known for playing the character in Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” trilogy; more recently, Jeffrey Wright will be playing the character in Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” alongside Robert Pattinson’s Batman.
“Batgirl’s” plot details are currently hidden deep within the Arkham Mansion, but we do know that the film is looking to be released on the streaming platform sometime in 2022.
