A Black Canary movie with Jurnee Smollett is officially coming to HBO Max
By Lacy Baugher
It’s official: The Black Canary will return to our screens in the not-so-distant future.
After several extended fan campaigns pushing to see more of the character in the D.C. Extended Universe, actress Jurnee Smollett will reprise her role as Dinah Lance, also known as the Black Canary, for an HBO Max feature film.
The DCEU version of the Black Canary was first introduced in Birds of Prey (And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) as a nightclub singer working for the crime lord Roman Sionis (Ewan McGregory), known as the Black Hand.
After she rescues Harley (Margot Robbie) from a kidnapping attempt, Dinah ultimately betrays her boss to help save young Cassandra Cain (Ella Jay Basco) and joins forces with Helena Bertinelli and Renee Montoya. Along the way, she reveals her supersonic vocal ability, often known in the comics as the “Canary Cry”.
By the end of the movie, it feels as though Dinah’s story has only just begun, which is part of the reason the prospect of an HBO Max film is so exciting. Though the Black Canary is one of DC Comics’ most recognizable female heroes, her live-action presence had previously been confined to The CW’s Arrowverse, where several women have worn the mantle already, rather than in the more mainstream, big-budget films.
The HBO Max movie, which does not have a title yet, will reteam Smollett with former Lovecraft Country creator Misha Green. (It’s not clear yet if Green will direct the movie or simply write the script, but as the duo has already proven they work well together let’s hope it’s both.)
Guess the Canary is out of the cage! 🤪 So excited to finally embark on this adventure with my creative soul sis @MishaGreen. 🖤💛 #blackcanary #dinahlance #lettttssssssgoooooo ahhhhhhhhh!!!!! https://t.co/GocuNdEn6E
— jurnee smollett (@jurneesmollett) August 20, 2021
Though the viral campaign has been pushing for a Black Canary limited series, an HBO Max movie sure sounds like the next best thing that fans could hope for. (And, who knows, maybe the film could inspire a series down the road? Stranger things have definitely happened in the world of interconnected media!)
Plus, the Black Canary movie is just one of several DC Comics films in the works at the streamer at the moment. Leslie Grace was recently cast as the lead in the long-rumored Batgirl movie, and Cobra Kai star Xolo Mariduena is in talks to play the hero known as Blue Beetle.
What do you think of the prospect of a Black Canary movie? Sound off in the comments.