Whether it’s in Batman: The Animated Series or the in comics, it’s no secret that Harley Quinn is an animal lover. Her most famous companions are her hyenas, Bud and Lou. While they have made the transition to comics and to the Injustice video games, it looks as if Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) will take them in a slightly different direction.
Although we've known for a while that Harley's hyenas would appear in director Cathy Yan's film, the latest trailer confirms at least one of them will go by a different name. In the final scene of the new footage, newcomer Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco) comes upon a hyena in a bathtub inside the home Harley (Margot Robbie), who says, “Named him Bruce after that hunky Wayne guy."
While it’s not the original name of either hyena, calling him Bruce is very much in character for Harley, who’s openly had a crush on Bruce Wayne throughout her history. That's perhaps best illustrated by Harley Quinn’s Valentine Special #1, by Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti and John Timms, in which she she pays a million dollars to go on a date with the billionaire playboy.
The hyenas originally got their names in the Batman: The Animated Series episode “Joker’s Millions” as a tribute to the comedy duo Abbott and Costello. However, their backstories were not revealed until the 2018 comic Harley Loves Joker #1, in which Harley liberated them from a research laboratory.
There were hints about the hyena’s new name when promotional photos showed off a new dog tag worn by Harley, which reads "Bruce." That led to speculation Batman himself could have a role in the movie. Birds of Prey costume designer, K.K. Barrett, directly addressed the images, saying it was the name of Harley's new pet; however, she was vaguer when it came to whether Bruce Wayne himself would actually be in the film.
Batman's future in the so-called DC Extended Universe is messy, to say the least. Robert Pattinson has been cast in Matt Reeves' The Batman; however, it's unclear whether the film is set in the same fictional words as Suicide Squad, Aquaman and Shazam! Meanwhile, the Batman from Harley's continuity was played by Ben Affleck, but he's since left the role behind. Despite all of that, having Harley give a clear nod to Batman in Birds of Prey means that Bruce Wayne is still a prominent figure in her world, and he will live on, at least through Harley's fluffy companion.
Directed by Cathy Yan from a script by Christina Hodson, Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) stars Margot Robbie, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Rosie Perez, Ewan McGregor, Ella Jay Basco, Steven Williams, Derek Wilson, Dana Lee, Francois Chau, Charlene Amoia, Chris Messina and Matthew Willig. The film is scheduled for release on Feb. 7, 2020.