Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Gugu Mbatha-Raw & more in the mix for Birds of Prey

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Margot Robbie will soon be reprising her SUICIDE SQUAD role of Harley Quinn for BIRDS OF PREY, an upcoming Warner Bros. film which will see the giggling sociopath joining forces with the likes of Black Canary, Huntress, Renee Montoya, and Cassandra Cain. Robbie, who is producing the film as well as starring in it, has said that she pitched Warner Bros. the project as "R-rated girl gang film including Harley, because I was like, ‘Harley needs friends.’ Harley loves interacting with people, so don’t ever make her do a standalone film. She’s got to be with other people, it should be a girl gang. I wasn’t seeing enough girl gangs on screen, especially in the action space. So that was always a big part of it." As production on the film is looking at getting started early next year, the studio is in the process of nailing down just who will be starring in the film alongside Margot Robbie.

Thanks to THR, we now know several of the actresses who are in the mix for the leading roles. The outlet claims that Gugu Mbatha-Raw (A WRINKLE IN TIME) and Jurnee Smolett-Bell (Underground) are in the mix for Black Canary, with Variety's Justin Kroll adding that Janelle Monae (HIDDEN FIGURES) is also being considered but hasn't tested for the role. Mary Elizabeth Winstead (10 CLOVERFIELD LANE), Cristin Milioti (Black Mirror), and Margaret Qualley (The Leftovers) have each tested or read for the part of Huntress according to THR's sources, with Justina Machado (One Day at a Time) and Roberta Colindrez (I Love Dick) having tested for Renee Montoya. As for Cassandra Cain, there's no word on who Warner Bros. is considering, but they're reportedly looking to "remold the character as a 12-year old" and are looking for an Asian actress to fill the role. Don't get attached to any of these names as it's been said that there will be another round of testing next week, but this is our first indication on what the studio seems to be looking for.

Cathy Yan (DEAD PIGS) will helm BIRDS OF PREY from a script by Christina Hodson (BUMBLEBEE), and Margot Robbie has said that she's thrilled Yan will be directing the film. "Giving a female director the chance to do big budget stuff," Robbie said. "They always get ‘Here’s the tiny little film’… I was like, ‘I love action. I love action films. I’m a girl. What, are we meant to only like a specific thing’?” So it was a hugely important to find a female director for this, if possible. But at the end of the day — male, female — the best director gets the job and Cathy was the best director."