“Batgirl” directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah claim that Warner Bros blocked their access to the cancelled film’s footage.
The superhero movie was dramatically canned earlier this month and the filmmaking duo have accused the studio of blocking their access to the production servers to prevent the pair from developing their work.
In an interview with SKRIPT, Fallah said: “We have nothing. Adil called me and said, ‘shoot everything on your phone’.
“I went on the server, and everything was blocked.”
El Arbi added: “We were like, 'F****** s***! All the scenes with Batman in them! S***!"
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The directors also shut down rumours that poor test screenings were responsible for the flick's cancellation and insists that it was a strategic decision to shelve the movie, which had been set to Leslie Grace, JK Simmons and Michael Keaton.
El Arbi, 34, said: “The guys from Warners told us it was not a talent problem from our part or the actress, or even the quality of the movie.
“They told us it was strategic change.
“There was new management, and they wanted to save some money.”
Fallah revealed that he was utterly gobsmacked when he found out that the movie, which had already been shot, would not be getting released.
The 36-year-old director said: “First, when I heard the news, I was shocked, I didn’t know how to react.
“I wanted to break stuff, cry, even laugh. I was like, ‘This is not happening’.”
The “Bad Boys for Life” directors are still holding out hope for the movie and are grateful for the support from figures in the film industry.
Fallah said: “Seeing all the support on Twitter, and even from big directors Edgar Wright and James Gunn, who sent us supportive messages, it was comforting.”
El Arbi added: “After all we make movies for the audience, not for us.
“We just hope that one day the movie will be released, for the cast and crew. We are a small family.”