Brendan Fraser’s Unforgiven Hollywood Letdown: Two Films Lost

Brendan Fraser’s return to the spotlight has been one of the more heartening stories in recent film history. After years out of the limelight, the bloke’s found himself back in favour, and it’s hard to find anyone who reckons he doesn’t deserve it. He’s always been seen as a genuinely likeable fella, and while he’s not fronting massive blockbusters like he used to—unless you count the much-hyped Mummy 4 that’s apparently in the works—taking home an Oscar for The Whale more than makes up for it. That win was well-earned, and though he hasn’t quite hit those dizzy heights again, he’s managed to dodge the so-called ‘Oscars curse’. These days, he’s just getting on with the job, knowing he’s unlikely to be out of fashion any time soon.

But even the most easy-going types have their limits. Fraser’s had the misfortune of starring in not one, but two films that never saw the light of day. The first was an animated flick called Big Bug Man, which was meant to feature Marlon Brando’s last ever performance. In the end, the project was quietly canned, and Fraser was left wondering what he’d done to deserve it. Then, lightning struck twice with Batgirl.

Batgirl’s Sudden Demise

The comic book adaptation, directed by the Bad Boys for Life duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, had Fraser playing the villain Firefly, alongside Leslie Grace in the lead and Michael Keaton donning the cape again. Filming wrapped up, and the project was deep into post-production when Warner Bros decided to pull the pin, blaming financial reasons for scrapping what was shaping up to be a pricey superhero outing. Fraser was clearly gutted, saying,

‘The fans really wanted to see this film made. Leslie Grace is a dynamo. The movie was shot and conceived for a smaller screen. In this age that we’ve come out of now between streaming service versus theatrical release, it would up being the canary in the coal mine. What did we learn from this? Work with trusted filmmakers.’

He made those comments in September 2022, just a month after the studio locked Batgirl away for good.

Lasting Frustration and Industry Critique

Even three years on, Fraser hadn’t moved on. He pointed out,

‘The tragedy of that is there’s a generation of little girls who don’t have a heroine to go up to and go, “She looks like me.” I mean, Michael Keaton came back as Batman! The Batman!’

He didn’t hold back when it came to the studio’s decision-makers, adding,

‘The product… I’m sorry, “content”, is being commodified to the extent that it’s more valuable to burn it down and get the insurance on it than to give it a shot in the marketplace. I mean, with respect, we could blight itself.’

Unless something major changes, Batgirl looks set to stay locked away, never to be seen by punters.