New fan art turns Cassandra Cain actress Ella Jay Basco into Batgirl for Birds of Prey 2. Released in February, Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) adapted a number of famous comic book characters to DC’s movie universe for the first time, including Dinah Lance/Black Canary and Helena Bertinelli/Huntress. Audiences were similarly introduced to Basco’s Cassandra, an orphaned pick-pocket who’s targeted by the sadistic Black Mask after stealing - and swallowing - the highly coveted Bertinelli diamond. But by the end, Cassandra had not only made it out in one piece, she’d even found a new protector and mentor in the form of the recently-emancipated Harley.

In the wake of Birds of Prey’s disappointing box office run, it’s not clear if Warner Bros. has any immediate plans to bring Cassandra and/or the titular team back in a spinoff film, now that Birds of Prey 2 seems unlikely to happen. At the same time, the movie was well-received by critics and general audiences, and many fans have made it equally clear they would like to see both Cassandra and the Birds again at some point. Some have even started making artwork that imagines what Basco’s character would look like following her transformation into Batgirl.

Digital artist Eugene Gore/junkome took to Instagram to post their fan art of Basco’s Cassandra Cain as Batgirl. Basco’s official Twitter account even re-posted the artwork, accompanied with a simple message of “Thank you @junkome_gore”. You can check both of those posts out, below.

Although Cassandra eventually became Batgirl in the DC comic books, the character has a very different backstory from the version Basco played in Birds of Prey. Created by Kelley Puckett and Damion Scott in 1999, the original comic book iteration of Cassandra was the daughter of the deadly assassins David Cain and Lady Shiva, who (naturally) raised her to become a highly-skilled and mute killer. However, she fled her parents at a young age and wound up traveling around the world. Eventually, Cassandra crossed paths with Oracle in Gotham City and, under the latter’s guidance, honed her abilities and moral code to take up the Batgirl mantle. Birds of Prey writer Christina Hodson is actually set to write a Batgirl movie, albeit one that’s expected to explore Barbara Gordon’s time as the superhero, prior to her becoming Oracle.

Still, based on her charismatic performance in Birds of Prey, it would be a shame if Basco never got the chance to play Cassandra Cain again and maybe even evolve into her Batgirl persona at some point down the line. This artwork is further testament to just how good she would be in the role, and all the more reason for Cassandra to come back in a future DC film (whatever the equivalent of Birds of Prey 2 might be). It could even make sense to have her show up again in the Batgirl movie, as a way of planting the seeds for her to take on the mantle herself one day. Naturally, we will keep you posted as more details about the character’s future on the big screen comes to light

Source: Ella Jay Basco/Twitter

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