Christina Hodson talks penning scripts for Birds of Prey and Batgirl

With BUMBLEBEE garnering the best reviews of the TRANSFORMERS franchise (by far), the stage is set for screenwriter Christina Hodson's next big outings: BIRDS OF PREY (AND THE FANTABULOUS EMANCIPATION OF ONE HARLEY QUINN) and BATGIRL. While speaking with Variety recently, Hodson touched upon her upcoming DC projects, including commenting on the lengthy and somewhat bizarre title for the BIRDS OF PREY film.

I kind of think it’s all in there. I think it sets the tone a little bit in that it’s a little tongue-in-cheek. My hands are so tied. But I do think it speaks for itself a little bit. Emancipation means a lot of different things to a lot of different people, and we’re going to be exploring that in different ways.

Christina Hodson admitted that the online response to the title has been "super mixed," but that audiences will just have to wait and see what it really means. "Some people love it, some people think we’re nuts… I think it’s always hard when you’re doing something bold like that to do it without any context," Hodson said. "There’s no marketing yet, we haven’t even started shooting. But all things will start to make sense as we get closer and closer to [premiere date] Feb. 7, 2020." As for whether fans will be able to accept an emancipated Harley Quinn, Christina Hodson believes they will.

I do. I think she really has [been accepted] in the comics already, but I think absolutely people are ready for that. She is such a cool, bold, fun, great character. She doesn’t have to be in anyone’s shadow. So I’m excited to see Harley stand on her own and be her own thing. She is the character, in all of my writing, that I’ve most enjoyed. I’m excited to bring her into the world a second time. She’s so full of contradictions, she’s so intelligent, but also so crazy. She’s just the most fun to write. You never know what you’re gonna get when you sit down.

As the BATGIRL film isn't quite as far along as BIRDS OF PREY (AND THE FANTABULOUS EMANCIPATION OF ONE HARLEY QUINN), Hodson isn't about to reveal much, but she did say that she's in the middle of falling in love with her. "Charlie [from BUMBLEBEE] feels like an old friend now, because that was a while ago and because she is so personally inspired. Harley just feels like my crazy alter ego. When I’m feeling nuts, that’s what Harley is. And Batgirl…honestly it’s funny, there’s a little piece of me in every character I write. They start with me, and then they take on a life of their own," Hodson said. "She’s been through so many iterations. There’s certain characteristics of hers that are always there that I’m excited to develop further. Whenever I’m writing a character who’s based on someone who’s existed in a previous form, whether it’s comics or a movie or anything, I always hope to bring something new to them and bring them to life in their own way, even if they fairly iconic like Harley Quinn or Batgirl. I think fans want the original, to be honest, but they also want to see something they haven’t seen before."

Starring Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Huntress, Jurnee Smollett-Bell as Black Canary, Rosie Perez as Renee Montoya, Ella Jay Basco as Cassandra Cain, and Ewan McGregor as Black Mask, BIRDS OF PREY (AND THE FANTABULOUS EMANCIPATION OF ONE HARLEY QUINN) will find Harley Quinn, Huntress, and Black Canary teaming up to protect Cassandra Cain when she comes across a diamond belonging to Black Mask, a kingpin in Gotham City's criminal underworld. The film is slated for a February 7, 2020 release.