Birds of Prey, which releases in cinemas on February 7, brings back Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad, un-tethered from Jared Leto's take on the Joker. The star, who also produced the new film, had some say over what happened next with her character, and was reportedly eyeing two different comic properties--Birds of Prey and Gotham City Sirens.
Speaking to Nerdist, Robbie talks about the challenges of getting an R-rated, female-led superhero film off the ground, and how she was inspired by the huge Harley Quinn fanbase she became aware of while promoting Suicide Squad. What ultimately drew her to Birds of Prey over Gotham City Sirens, though, was the opportunity to give a spotlight to some lesser-known characters in the DC universe.
Robbie says that while she was researching the character, she started to read the Birds of Prey comic series, and that she "fell in love with Huntress." "I was like, 'Wow, there’s so many cool female DC characters and no one knows anything about any of them!,' Robbie says. "So what if we had a platform for fans to get to know and fall in love with some of these other amazing women?"
Robbie says that Gotham City Sirens was less exciting because it focused on just three characters, and the other two--Catwoman and Poison Ivy--and already well-known. In fact, Catwoman will be appearing in The Batman, played by Zoë Kravitz.
"I thought that might be the perfect platform to introduce some female characters who might really have some legs in the DC Universe," Robbie says.
Birds of Prey is expected to earn between $49 and $55 million in its opening weekend. It will be far removed from the much-maligned Suicide Squad, although Robbie is also set to reprise her role in James Gunn's The Suicide Squad.