'Birds of Prey', often subtitled as 'The Fabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn' is one of the most eagerly awaited super-hero films to emerge from the depths of the DC universe in recent years. Many dedicated fans of the comic books were hugely disappointed by 'Suicide Squad', in which Margot Robbie, who also serves as executive producer on 'Birds of Prey', debuted in the role of Harley Quinn, so much so that a pseudo-remake-sort-of-sequel is in the works for 2021. Despite poor ratings and an even worse fan reception, however, many viewers agreed that the saving grace of the film was Margot Robbie's portrayal of the unhinged, deadly and colourful force of nature that is Harley Quinn. Robbie herself also saw something exciting in the spirit of the character and appealed to Warner Bros for a solo film back in 2015, and so 'Birds of Prey' was born.
What's the plot, puddin'?
'Birds of Prey' is set after the events of 'Suicide Squad'. Harley and the Joker have since ended their deeply abusive relationship, leaving Harley to celebrate her emancipation in Gotham City. The city is soon overrun, however, when a crime lord known as Black Mask places a bounty on young Cassandra Cain's head and all of Gotham's inhabitants set out to bring her in. Harley Quinn joins forces with the equally inimitable Black Canary, Huntress and The Question to protect Cassandra and bring the formidable Black Mask down.
The DC Extended Universe is notoriously complex to navigate, with several iterations of various characters cropping up over the years. To help you keep on track with what is sure to be one wild ride of an emancipation, we've put together this "who's who" of 'Birds of Prey' to offer some insight into the backstories of heroes, villains and vigilantes alike. Though DC has not revealed just how many details from the comics their on-screen counterparts will share, the rich history of the franchise has set up some fascinating building blocks for these characters. 'Birds of Prey', directed by Cathy Yan, will be released in UK cinemas on the 7th February 2020.
1Harley Quinn
The iconic, baseball-bat-wielding Harley Quinn first made an appearance in the DC universe onscreen as opposed to on page when her character was introduced in 'Batman: The Animated Series' in 1992. Harley was not always the fierce and uninhibited villainess that we saw in the admittedly ill-fated 'Suicide Squad', however. Her origin story began under the name of Dr. Harleen Quinzel, a young but renowned psychologist working at the infamous Arkham Asylum in Gotham City. It was in her post there that she met her then-patient and future lover, the Joker, who managed to turn the power of psychology against Harleen and lure her into the life of villainy. The brainy and brilliant Dr. Harleen Quinzel was transformed into Harley Quinn under the Joker's hand as she became his accomplice and girlfriend, though their relationship was defined by a huge power imbalance, with Harley often at the receiving end of the Joker's relentless emotional and physical abuse.
In 'Birds of Prey', however, Harley (brilliantly portrayed by Aussie actress Margot Robbie) has left her puddin' and his abusive ways behind and is set on making her own way through Gotham's underworld with her makeshift girl gang in tow.
2Black Canary/Dinah Lance
Black Canary is the code-name of Dinah Lance, a woman who grew up within the Justice Society of America constantly surrounded by superheroes, vigilantes and high expectations to exceed. Dinah inherited the Black Canary title from her mother who, surprisingly, urged her daughter not to choose the same life that she herself had done. Dinah, however, is a strong believer in justice and thus choose to take on the role regardless. She is the only one of the Birds of Prey to possess a super-human ability: "the canary cry". The canary cry is a scream that causes ultrasonic vibrations to resonate through material around her, making the cry a deadly weapon to be used against both human opponents and any physical structures that get in her way. A keen strategist, Black Canary is also the field commander for the Birds of Prey.
Black Canary has been in the DC universe for longer than any character on this list, with her first iteration appearing in 1947. This long-loved character will be brought to life on screen by Jurnee Smollett-Bell in 'Birds of Prey'.
3Huntress/Helena Bertinelli
Whereas Black Canary was brought up on the side of justice, Huntress was raised in a life of crime. Born Helena Bertinelli to the Bertinelli crime family of Gotham City, Huntress witnessed the brutal murders of her entire family at the hands of a rival don when she was just a child. Such a devastating event left its scars and, though Huntress has tried to process her past trauma, the pain that she carries often erupts in anger and violence and has inspired her mission of tracking down her family's murderers. Like Harley, Huntress is a morally gray character, having been taught from a very young age that those who play the dirtiest are the ones who ultimately triumph.
First introduced in the comics in 1989, Mary Elizabeth Winstead will portray Huntress in the film. We can't wait to see her wield Huntress' weapon of choice, the crossbow, as the Birds of Prey head into battle.
4The Question/Renee Montoya
The Question is the alter ego of Renee Montoya who, perhaps unexpectedly for a member of the Birds of Prey, is actually firmly committed to the law as a detective for the Gotham City Police Department. Renee is so committed to truth and order that she makes enemies very easily, even from within the police ranks as she firmly weeds out any corrupt cops. First created in 1992, Renee is an extremely important character to many DC fans not only as a Latina character, with both of her parents hailing from the Dominican Republic, but also as one of the first openly LGBTQ+ characters to feature in the DC universe.
When her day job doesn't cut it, Renee moonlights as the vigilante The Question to interrogate and bring in criminals. Like Black Canary, this is an inherited title, with Renee taking on the mask of The Question from her former mentor, Vic Sage. She is portrayed by Rosie Perez in the film.
5Cassandra Cain
For a young girl, Cassandra Cain has known many titles in her lifetime. She first appeared as Bat Girl in the comics of 1999, though she has since passed this title onto another and goes by the ominous alter-ego of Orphan instead.
Cassandra was born to the assassins David Cain and Lady Shiva who, from the moment of Cassandra's birth, were set on honing her skills so that their daughter became the most accomplished assassin that this world has ever seen. Cassandra is extremely skilled at martial arts and armed combat and her years of training have given her the disquieting ability of blocking out pain, making her a near-unbeatable enemy. However, her parents were so focused on transforming their daughter into a killer that they neglected other aspects of her education and so Cassandra never learnt to read or write - her father, David Cain, told her that the body language of her opponent was the only tongue she had to understand.
After making her first kill on the orders of her father, Cassandra was so horrified that she fled from her family and took up the moniker of Orphan. In the film, it is the bounty placed on her head by Roman Sionsis that paves the way to the formation of the Birds of Play. Cassandra will be portrayed by Ella Jay Basco.
6Black Mask/Roman Sionsis
First introduced in the DC comics back in 1985, Roman Sionsis is a ruthless crime lord who hungers for power and will stop at nothing to get his hands on it. Sionsis is often referred to as Black Mask due to the black, skull-shaped headgear that he wears to intimidate his torture victims.
Like any good misogynist, Sionsis left Harley alone when she was under the Joker's protection, but now the pair have split up, he has no qualms about taking her down if she gets in his way by preventing the assassination of Cassandra.
Black Mask will be portrayed by Ewan McGregor in 'Birds of Prey'.
7Victor Zsasz
Every great villain needs a henchman to do his dirty work, and Victor Zsasz is all too happy to play that role for Roman Sionsis. Portrayed in 'Birds of Prey' by Chris Messina, Zsasz was introduced to the DC comics as a sadistic serial killer and enemy of Batman. Zsasz's weapon of choice is a knife, and for every victim of his he scores a tally on his body to represent the kill. Zsasz is a dangerously violent psychopath who gets joy from inflicting pain. His brutal aggression and lack of moral compass make him a formidable lackey for Sionsis.
