Black Mask may be the villain in Warner Bros.’ Birds of Prey

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Although not everyone loved SUICIDE SQUAD, the film has sure generated quite a number of potential spin-off projects, including the BIRDS OF PREY movie which will find Margot Robbie reprising the role of Harley Quinn alongside several other female DC characters. When Robbie pitched Warner Bros. on the project, she envisioned it 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 for who will be serving as the big-bad of BIRDS OF PREY, well, according to The Wrap, that villain will be none other than Black Mask, a sadistic Gotham City crime-lord.

Black Mask is the alias of Roman Sionis, who murdered his wealthy parents in order to take control of the family business, but after running the company into the ground, Sionis began seeking revenge against Bruce Wayne, who had offered to assist the failing business.  Roman Sionis then crafted a skull-like mask from the shattered pieces of his father's casket and turned to a life of crime as Black Mask. Last month The Wrap also revealed which DC characters would be appearing alongside Harley Quinn (Robbie) in BIRD OF PREY, such as Dinah Laurel Lance (Black Canary), Helena Bertinelli (Huntress), Cassandra Cain (a former Batgirl), and Renee Montoya (a Gotham detective who occasionally suits up as the Question). At the time, they also claimed that the villain would be one who had never appeared on the big-screen, and Black Mask certainly fits that description.

Margot Robbie has previously said the production on BIRDS OF PREY will get underway in January 2019, and that it will be "different" from the other Harley Quinn spin-offs as well as made with a "much smaller budget." Cathy Yan (DEAD PIGS) will helm BIRDS OF PREY from a script by Christina Hodson (BUMBLEBEE), and Margot Robbie is thrilled that 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."