Back in July of last year, Margot Robbie confirmed to us that the DC girl gang movie Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) would be aiming for an R-rating, and now that has been made official by the Motion Picture Association of America.
The Cathy Yan-directed team-up has been classified R for its theatrical release, receiving the rating for “strong violence and language throughout, and some sexual and drug material”.
Warner Bros. is of course coming off the enormous success of Joker, which became the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time following its release this year, and the only R-rated movie to date to have topped $1 billion at the global box office.
While it would be a surprise if Birds of Prey managed to repeat the success of the Joaquin Phoenix-headlined hit, with the film tracking a domestic opening weekend of around $50 million, Warner Bros. is surely be feeling quietly confident that it can extend its recent run of DC successes this coming February.
Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is a twisted tale told by Harley herself, as only Harley can tell it. When Gotham’s most nefariously narcissistic villain, Roman Sionis, and his zealous right-hand, Zsasz, put a target on a young girl named Cass, the city is turned upside down looking for her. Harley, Huntress, Black Canary and Renee Montoya’s paths collide, and the unlikely foursome have no choice but to team up to take Roman down.
Cathy Yan (Dead Pigs) is directing Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) from a script by Christina Hodson (Bumblebee) with Margot Robbie reprising her Suicide Squad role as Harley Quinn alongside Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Fargo) as The Huntress, Jurnee Smolett-Bell (Underground) as Black Canary, Rosie Perez (Fearless) as Renee Montoya, Ella Jay Basco (Grey’s Anatomy) as Cassandra Cain, Ewan McGregor (Christopher Robin) as Black Mask, Chris Messina (Sharp Objects) as Victor Zsasz, Ali Wong (Black Box), Robert Catrini (Jack Reacher: Never Go Back), Steven Williams (The Chi), Dana Lee (Dr. Ken), Francois Chau (The Expanse, The Tick) and Matthew Willig (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs). It is set for release on February 7th 2020.
