A leaked Batgirl set photo shows that Lex Luthor's presence is still a popular talking point in the DC Extended Universe.The photo, shared by Batgirl Film News, shows a plethora of tabloids from within the film's world. The cover of one such tabloid, the Gotham Tattler, advertises an interview with Luthor, who remains the richest resident of Gotham's Arkham Asylum. The magazine's text reads, "We get his story from inside Arkham Asylum" and also reveals he has hired a new lawyer to get him an appeal. The cover of the Tattler also teases testimonies from witnesses of the Capitol Building bombing, a profile of LexCorp Industries and Lex's perspective on his time as the head of one of the world's largest multinational conglomerates.
Jesse Eisenberg debuted as Lex Luthor in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, where the billionaire villain manipulated the U.S. government into giving him access to the corpse of General Zod, which he used to kill the Man of Steel. Later, Luthor saw a vision of Apokolips and seemingly lost his mind. This affliction meant that when Batman eventually apprehended Luthor, he was sent to the Arkham Home for the Emotionally Disturbed. However, by the end of Justice League, Luthor escaped custody and was living large on his private yacht. Batgirl's Gotham Tattler cover clashes with this status quo, suggesting Luthor is either still behind bars or has at least tricked the tabloids into thinking he is.
Luthor isn't the only villain the Gotham Tattler is profiling in Batgirl. An additional photo from the set shows that the magazine will be running a cover article on the Court of Owls. In the comics, the Court of Owls is a criminal organization composed of some of Gotham's wealthiest citizens, who regularly manipulate the city into situations that profit them. The photo from Batgirl suggests the group will play a similar role within the DCEU, advertising them as "the secret society run by the elite & corrupt."
Batgirl stars Leslie Grace as Barbara Gordon, a young woman who becomes a masked vigilante. She will be joined by J.K. Simmons as Gotham City Police commissioner James Gordon and Brendan Fraser as Firefly, whose comic book counterpart is a fire-themed thief. Additionally, the film will star Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne, aka. Batman.
Directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah from a script by Christina Hodson, Batgirl does not yet have a release date yet but will premiere exclusively on HBO Max.
Source: Twitter