An Animated Catwoman Movie Was Apparently Canceled At HBO Max Mid-Production, And The Aftermath Sounds Infuriating

While many fans would likely agree that the DCU is on sturdier ground with James Gunn and Peter Safran running the show, the duo’s lineup of upcoming DC movies and TV shows hasn’t exactly been free from stalled and canceled projects in various stages of development. The hits just keep on coming, as the director of the animated DCU feature Dynamic Duo revealed he was previously months into the development of since-scrapped feature about the most alluringly thieving rogue on Batman’s list, Catwoman.

The idea that an animated Catwoman movie had enough of a green light to get so far into the process should be a good thing, but the project is said to be one of dozens culled from Warner Bros’ to-do list by its cancellation-hungry CEO David Zaslav, who was also behind scrapping Batgirl in 2022 (which actor Jacob Scipio shared praise for in October 2025). While I can’t argue against my own excitement for Dynamic Duo, it’s rather infuriating to me to learn how it allegedly came from the ashes of the Catwoman feature.

What Dynamic Duo's Director Revealed About The Catwoman Movie

Speaking to the outlet Biz New Orleans in an interview that has itself been scrapped from the site (via DCFilmNews), filmmaker Arthur Mintz dropped the Catwoman news in a seemingly casual fashion, saying:

It's unclear exactly when the project in question was given its greenlight, nor when the decision was made to pull the plug on it. Zaslav's post-COVID era has been pockmarked with decisions that have targeted financial bottom lines more than top-notch viewer experiences, so he could have feasibly just canceled another 42 HBO Max projects just this morning.

Ending that many up-and-coming projects is a frustrating enough concept to think about, but it's not even the detail that's embedded itself deepest under my skin here.

Matt Reeves Stepped In To Actually Show Zaslav What He'd Just Canceled

As the helmer of the non-DCU Batman franchise, Matt Reeves has some sway with WB's Powers That Be, and Arthur Mintz says the director had seen some of the early work put together for the Catwoman movie. So after the streaming movie's fate was sealed, Reeves took it upon himself to create a highlight reel from what was available, and showed it off for Warner Bros. execs. According to Mintz:

If this was where the story ended, I wouldn't be nearly as annoyed. Alas, that's not the case.

Despite the CEO's reportedly strong positivity, the studio's marketing department is said to have pushed back with the idea that a bigger story would be needed in order to justify a larger-scale release. Which seems to be precisely where the origins for the Dynamic Duo movie surfaced. Instead of focusing on the story of just one Selina Kyle, why not double down and show off the youths for two characters, in this case Jason Todd and Dick Grayson.

To be clear, I'm perfectly happy about watching Dynamic Duo when it comes out in 2028, as it sounds like a magical mix of puppetry, stop-motion and other animation styles, and it boasts famed comic artist Jock behind the scenes. But my gripe here is in how it apparently came into existence.

• David Zaslav cancels Catwoman movie presumably without seeing any footage
• Zaslav reverses decision, wants Catwoman movie after Matt Reeves shows him footage
• Rather than this young female villainess' storyline itself getting expanded, that project gets replaced by one about two male heroes.

Here's hoping the work being done on Dynamic Duo eventually sparks the decision to go back and finish everything that was already developed for the Catwoman project, possibly with new ideas and visual tricks to bring into it. I don't like thinking that we may have been robbed of another great Catwoman performance, even if Li'l Selina might not be everyone's cup of warm cream.