We’ve still got a lot to learn about the upcoming Batgirl film, but it looks like we might have gotten a glimpse of a fan favorite trans character joining the movie.
Ivory Aquino, a trans, Filipina-American actress, was spotted on set with Leslie Grace, who plays the titular hero in the upcoming HBO Max film.
Word went out last October that Batgirl was looking to cast a trans Asian American woman for the role of “Alanna.” According to ScreenRant, the role’s description sounded similar to that of Alysia Yeoh, Barbara Gordon’s roommate and best friend first introduced in Batgirl by writer Gail Simone in 2011.
Alysia came out as trans by issue #19 of the run, and dated both Barbara’s brother, James, and a woman named Jo, the latter of whom she eventually married in the comics.
As plot details for Batgirl the movie have been largely kept under wraps, we don’t know for sure that Alysia will be part of the line-up, or what type of role she’ll play relative to the plot if she is. But fans of the character are hopeful after photos of Aquino on set started circulating.
Even Simone herself tweeted out something that left fans even more confident that Alysia has joined the crew.
The film, which was written by Birds of Prey scribe Christina Hodson and is being directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, has also cast J.K. Simmons, Brendon Fraser, Jacob Scipio, and Michael Keaton so far, and is slated for release sometime later this year.
