Report: Batgirl lands Avengers director Joss Whedon for feature length film

Warner Bros. is moving ahead with its stand-alone Batgirl movie, and the studio is reportedly bringing on Joss Whedon to direct.

Whedon, best known for creating television series like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly, along with movies like The Avengers, is nearing a deal with the studio to direct, write and produce, according to Variety. There is currently no one else on board for the film.

Batgirl is the newest DC hero to get her own stand-alone movie, and will join the DC Extended Universe along with Nightwing, Cyborg, Aquaman and the Flash. The latter three will be formally introduced to audiences later this year in Justice League, but had their brief debut in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice last year.

As Barbara Gordon, Batgirl made her first appearance in 1967, and Gordon appeared regularly in DC comics throughout the years. DC gave the character a soft reboot in 2014, known informally as “Batgirl of Burnside,” that proved incredibly popular and may have partially inspired the company’s 2015 line-wide relaunch, DC You. The Batgirl series is currently written by YA author Hope Larson.

Batgirl isn’t the only female superhero that DC and Warner Bros. are focusing on, either. Last year, Warner Bros. announced it was moving forward with a sequel to Suicide Squad that would focus on the Gotham City Sirens: Poison Ivy, Catwoman and Harley Quinn.

The next installment in the DCEU is Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman. The movie will be released on June 2.