Filipina-Korean Actress Cast as Batgirl in the DC Film ‘Birds of Prey’

Ella Jay Basco, a young Filipina-Korean actress, is playing Batgirl in the upcoming DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film “Birds of Prey”.

Officially titled “Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)”, the Warner Bros’ movie will be a Harley Quinn spinoff starring Margot Robbie with filmmaker Cathy Yan directing.

Born to a Korean mother and a Filipino father, Basco has previous appearances in “Veep”, “Teachers”, and “Grey’s Anatomy”. Aside from acting, the young star is also into photography, cooking, playing tennis, playing musical instruments and composing original music.

Her uncle, Dante Basco (“Hook,” “Avatar: The Last Airbender”), recently shared a sample of Basco’s music on Instagram:

In an interview with Abookof.us, Basco revealed how she got the highly-coveted role of Cassandra Cain, a.k.a. Batgirl.

“The audition process was a month long and I had to go in about 5 times,” she was quoted as saying. “I watched a bunch of movies, practiced my martial arts skills, and even read some comic books about Cassandra Cain to prepare.”

She also shared how excited she was upon learning that she landed the role.

“I was immediately in shock and couldn’t believe I booked it! I worked really hard on this role and got emotional because I wanted this part so bad! I mean I totally cried. I knew from that moment on, my life would change forever.”

Basco noted that what excites her most was that she gets to represent the Asian community in film.

“I really want to represent the Asian community – that alone inspires me to act because representation and diversity in the industry is super important to me.”

Based on released plot details, “Birds of Prey” will be an unlikely team-up between Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell), Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez). The women must work together to rescue Cassandra (Basco) from one of Gotham’s most vicious crime lords, Black Mask, played by Ewan McGregor.

Set to debut on February 2020, “Birds of Prey” will be the eighth American superhero film in the DCEU based on the DC Comics.

Featured image via Instagram/ellajaybasco

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