A new Batgirl set photo hints at a Batman villain appearance. But which one and from what timeline?
Superheroes have their ‘rogue galleries’, which is difficult enough for them to handle most of the time.
However, when another superhero’s gallery begins to bleed into their world, things get a bit more chaotic.
Hugo Strange has had many encounters with Batman, usually ending in imprisonment or death.
He was the first villain to discover Batman’s identity as Bruce Wayne.
The character first appeared in Detective Comics #36 (February 1940).
Strange has challenged Batman in many ways, from creating monstrous people in the comics to facilitating Bane’s transformation in the Fox TV show, Gotham.
His beef with the Caped Crusader could realistically force a meeting with Batgirl eventually, so it makes perfect sense to bring him into her world.
Batgirl Set Photo Hints At Batman Villain’s Appearance
Any ideas who this dude is that features on a Gotham City billboard getting hung up on the #Batgirl set? @LeyendasMDC @DCverso2 @BatgirlFilm pic.twitter.com/i7IQbWB8X2
— craig williams (@glasgowmixtape) January 10, 2022
A photo from the set of Batgirl, being filmed in Glasgow, Scotland, was posted on Twitter by user glasgowmixtape.
In the photo there is an image of a bald man with a maniacal smile, with the words “EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT!”
This likeness heavily resembles the DC villain, Hugo Strange.
The only thing missing from his appearance is the recognizable coke bottle glasses, which have been inexplicably marked out.
Although Strange has not encountered Batgirl in the DC comics, he has been a mainstay villain to Batman throughout the title, with some lengthy periods of absence.
He is usually portrayed as having the role of a psychiatrist, either at Arkham Asylum or elsewhere, but has had a few other origin stories throughout the series.
Hugo Strange has been many things in the DC universe, but if he appears in the Batgirl film it will only be his second live action foray.
The New Batgirl Costume Is Very Comic Accurate
Image: DCFilms
The character was portrayed by BD Wong in Gotham, as Professor Hugo Strange. In this adaptation of the character, he ‘creates’ Bane by injecting Eduardo Dorrance with a serum called Venom.
In Gotham, he also aligns himself with the likes of The Court of Owls and the League of Assassins, under the rule of Nyssa al Ghul.
If Warner Bros. decides to use the iteration of the character from the TV series, we could see the introduction of The Court of Owls.
Moreover, they could bring back in the League of Assassins, which was used for plot in the Christopher Nolan Dark Knight trilogy.
Either of these avenues could make for an interesting story for the Batgirl film, and gives the directors, Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah an intriguing playground in which to frolic.
Batgirl is set to premiere later this year on HBO Max.
