The HBO Max exclusive Batgirl movie reportedly added another cast member to its ranks. J.K. Simmons is said to be signing on and will return as Batman's ally Commissioner Gordon, a role he first played in Zack Snyder's Justice League movie.
The HBO Max project appears to be moving fast to fill out major parts of the cast after finding its leading lady. In The Heights star Leslie Grace was named over several candidates who were all looking to take on the role of Barbara Gordon in Batgirl. Now, those who are excited to see the finished product know who is going to be playing her on-screen dad.
The Hollywood Reporter said that Simmons hasn't officially been inked a contract to return as James Gordon, but talks are progressing in a positive way, quite quickly. Should the deal get done, it would mean that Simmons will expand on the role HBO Max viewers got a longer look at in Snyder's cut of Justice League. Commissioner Gordon had a small role in the original version but it was expanded out when Snyder drew out the movie for a more than four-hour runtime.
Gordon is one of the best-known characters in the Batman universe and has long been portrayed as an ally, if not quite a friend of Bruce Wayne, otherwise known as Batman. In several of the comic book storylines, it's his friendship with Batman that eventually steers his daughter Barbara into also fighting crime by donning a cape and cowl. However, there are also some storylines where James Gordon is actually Barbara's uncle and adoptive father.
The plot of Batgirl is being kept under wraps, so it's not clear what Simmons and Grace's characters' relationship will be in the HBO Max movie. How much of Batgirl's comic storylines are going to be followed is also unknown at this point.
While Simmons signing on still isn't official, the deal he arrived at when he first joined Justice League seemed to foreshadow this kind of appearance. When he first joined the DC Cinematic Universe, he agreed to appear in three films as Commissioner Gordon. Snyder's film was the first of that trio. Batgirl would be the second, even if it might not have been the flick the actor originally thought would be his follow-up. As of now, whoever will apparently appear beside Simmons and Grace isn't yet known, though the announcements seem to be coming in a bit faster now that the flick has its leading actor.
Bargirl is currently in pre-production.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter