Following Suicide Squad‘s respectable performance at the box office, Warner Bros. is tapping director David Ayer for another film — he’ll direct Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn) in Gotham City Sirens which focuses on the female badasses of DC Comics’ pantheon. Ayer will produce the film alongside Robbie. However, Geneva Robertson-Dworet is taking over screenwriting duties from Christina Hodson, as we previously reported.
Warner Bros. is looking into other DC films as well, including a Suicide Squad sequel and a Deadshot spinoff. Nevertheless, Ayer and Robbie’s Gotham City Sirens is the furthest along in production. The film is still in its nascent stages, so no word yet on a release date. In the meantime, let’s explore who the titular Sirens really are.
Who are the Gotham City Sirens?
Back in 2009, writer Paul Dini and artist Guillem March created a new series entitled Gotham City Sirens. The monthly comic title focused on female villains from Batman’s rogues gallery, namely Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman. The series proved to be a success, but DC cancelled it in 2011 as part of the shakeups leading into The New 52. Harley joined the revamped Suicide Squad title, Catwoman received her own (still-running) series, and Poison Ivy became a protagonist of Birds of Prey.
It’s not clear how much Ayer and Robbie’s film will draw inspiration from Dini and March’s comic series. Nevertheless, there’s certainly the potential for overlap. The fact that Warner Bros. selected Gotham City Sirens as the title, as opposed to the rumored Birds of Prey title, indicates that the film concentrates on DC’s female villains more than its heroes. This will also be the first DC Extended Universe movie to (presumably) focus exclusively on Gotham City.
Perhaps Ayer and Robbie’s team will take some notes from the grittiness of Fox’s Gotham TV series. Unfortunately, a direct crossover with Gotham is all but impossible. If the first few installments in the DC Extended Universe are any indication, DC is determined to keep its TV and film universes separate. Still, it will be worth watching how Robbie uses this new film to further develop her version of Harley Quinn.
Furthermore, Robertson-Dworet’s selection as screenwriter indicates that Warner Bros. is increasingly giving female creators the roles that they deserve. I’d expect nothing less for DC’s first film about a team of female villains.