AceShowbiz -

"Batgirl" is losing its director. Joss Whedon, who was set to write, direct and produce the Warner Bros.-DC movie about the Gotham-based superheroine, has announced his departure from the feature film project.

" 'Batgirl' is such an exciting project, and Warners/DC such collaborative and supportive partners, that it took me months to realize I really didn't have a story," Whedon said in a statement. "I'm grateful to Geoff [Johns] and Toby [Emmerich] and everyone who was so welcoming when I arrived, and so understanding when I... uh, is there a sexier word for 'failed'?"

Whedon's involvement in the DC movie, which was first made public last March, was welcomed with much excitement as it's expected to bring the DC Movie Universe to a higher level in a competition with its biggest rival, Marvel Cinematic Universe, as Whedon is known for having directed "The Avengers" and its sequel "Avengers: Age of Ultron".

However, following the poor critical reception and disappointing box office performance of "Justice League" which Whedon had co-written and directed the reshoots following Zack Snyder's departure, there were rumors that he had been dumped from writing and directing the "Batgirl" movie. The rumors were not confirmed, though, at the time.

Thus, upon hearing of Whedon's departure from the upcoming DC movie, many fans are happy rather than sad. Some people see this as a great chance that another project, such as "The Batman" solo movie, will be the studio's top priority now.

"First Nightwing isn't a priority and now Batgirl is canceled. I love it. Now we can finally get moving on the Batman solo and introduce these characters gradually and slowly build up the 'Batverse'," one Twitter user wrote.

Another sees hope for "Man of Steel" sequel. "hopefully batgirl gets cancelled so they can fast tract a man of steel 2 or a solo batman film instead," the comic book fan tweeted.

Some others expect that Warner Bros. will hire a female director for the project. "@wbpictures, now that Joss Whedon is out as director for #Batgirl...Hire a female director again!" read one of the tweets.

No actor is attached to the "Batgirl" movie yet, though Scarlett Johansson and Charlize Theron have been rumored among those who were eying the role. Previously, Yvonne Craig, Alicia Silverstone and Danielle Judovits played the female superhero in "Batman" movies.