Summary
- Matt Reeves’ DC universe, including The Batman and The Penguin series, offers a darker, more violent, and less restrained take on Gotham City compared to the main DCU.
- Colin Farrell’s portrayal of The Penguin showcases the character’s anger, rage, and lighthearted sense of humor, making him a useful villain in the long-term plan for Reeves’ Batman franchise.
- The Penguin series, set to release in 2024, will connect directly to the narrative of The Batman and will explore Penguin’s attempts to gain power in a semi-destroyed Gotham after the events of the film. It is likely to draw inspiration from the No Man’s Land Batman comic storyline.
Matt Reeves’ DC universe began with his neo-noir crime epic The Batman in 2022, and will continue with an HBO Max original series The Penguin, following the character’s story after the first film. Reeves’ movies don’t take place in the same official universe as the main DCU, so there are plenty of opportunities for the director to tell a darker, less restrained story than the upcoming DC Universe seems set to be, avoiding needless humor and getting straight to the point with a dark story that mirrors some of DC’s most beloved comic storylines.
Penguin is possibly The Batman’s most important villain, and although he spends much of the movie in the shadows, it’s clear that he’s going to have a much larger role after The Batman ending opened up further opportunities for him to exert his influence over Gotham in the upcoming DC release. Presuming the character makes it through this story unscathed, The Penguin will likely be a huge part of Reeves’ long-term plan for The Batman franchise.
Related
Every Upcoming DC Movie In 2024 And Beyond
Here’s every new DC movie confirmed as in development by WB for 2024 and onwards, including release dates and where they belong in the franchise.
The Penguin TV Show Latest News
The latest news for The Penguin regards its release window, which has been specified to September 2024. This lets audiences get a better understanding of when to expect The Batman show spinoff – which is crucial given its prior production delays making its release period less clear – and builds excitement for the official specific release date, which is currently still unconfirmed. The September 2024 date also helps establish The Penguin’s place among DC’s upcoming releases, especially with the upcoming DC Universe set to start releasing its first ever series around the same period of time.
The Penguin‘s cast list has also had updates, clarifying some more members of Gotham’s crime families as named characters set to appear in the show, and several other non-named roles being revealed for other actors. This has set up a truly promising casting roster for the series, especially given some notable names can be found within it. It also suggests a little more about the specifics regarding the show’s plot, as the increased presence of crime family members underlines the idea that Oz will have some faces that are very familiar to him as both enemies and allies.
Other than this, the newest information regarding the upcoming DC show came with The Penguin‘s newest teaser trailer, which released March 22, 2024. The trailer reveals more about the series and what to expect from The Batman spinoff’s story and place in the franchise’s overall timeline, featuring a glimpse at some of Oz’s origin story, and the trials and tribulations he’s set to face in his efforts to take advantage of the power vacuum that The Batman ending leaves in Gotham.
Prior to this, the most recent news for the DC series was the reveal that filming has concluded for the show as of February 2024. This is a promising update, especially after the show was reportedly moved from a Spring 2024 window to a later Fall 2024 date according to Decider reporter Megan O’Keefe’s coverage of the Max 2024 Slate Preview.
HBO revealed the 2024 release date window for The Penguin in their April 2023 teaser for the show.
The Penguin TV Show Confirmed
The plans for Reeves’ Penguin TV show were confirmed shortly after the critical and commercial success of The Batman, with Farrell being the first cast member whose involvement was announced. It will connect directly to The Batman’s narrative, expanding Reeves’ vision of Gotham City through the Penguin’s perspective. It was also confirmed in March 2022 that an Arkham Asylum series would be going ahead, taking the place of a previously-rumored project surrounding the GCPD. Despite many steps forward in this Arkham Asylum spin-off, the details are still firmly under wraps.
Behind the scenes, both Reeves and Dylan Clark will serve as executive producers on the show, so it’s safe to assume that much of The Batman’s signature style and voice will also be present in this show. The creator, showrunner, and writer is Lauren LeFranc, who’s best known for her previous work on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. The exact lineup of directors hasn’t yet been announced, but it has been announced that Mare of Easttown’s Craig Zobel has announced that he’ll be helming The Penguin‘s first two episodes (via THR).
The Penguin TV Show Release Date Info
June 2024 saw a more specific update for The Penguin‘s release window, as the chairman and CEO of HBO and Max revealed in an interview with Variety that The Penguin is currently set to premiere in September 2024. This aligns with previous estimations of The Batman show spinoff releasing in Fall 2024, and means it will release alongside the DC Universe’s first release, Creature Commandos, which is also set to come out in the same month.
HBO & Max CEO Casey Bloys also notably described The Penguin as the platform’s “next big tentpole series” after House Of The Dragon season 2’s June 2024 release. Given the popularity of the Game Of Thrones franchise and its prequel spinoff, this appears to speak greatly to the hopes of what The Penguin could be for Max and for the universe of The Batman itself, setting up a promising backdrop for the show.
The Penguin TV Show Cast
The Penguin Actor | Character Name |
|---|---|
Colin Farrell | Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin |
Cristin Milioti | Sofia Falcone |
Rhenzy Feliz | Victor Aguilar |
Michael Zegen | Alberto Falcone |
Clancy Brown | Salvatore Maroni |
Michael Kelly | Johnny Vitti |
Shohreh Aghdashloo | Unconfirmed |
Deirdre O’Connell | Unconfirmed |
Mark Strong | Unconfirmed |
James Madio | Unconfirmed |
David H. Holmes | Unconfirmed |
Theo Rossi | Unconfirmed |
Craig Walker | Unconfirmed |
Scott Cohen | Unconfirmed |
François Chau | Unconfirmed |
Carmen Ejogo | Unconfirmed |
Jared Abrahamson | Unconfirmed |
Farrell will obviously be returning as Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot (aka The Penguin), with a whole new cast of friends and foes at his side to help flesh out this original story. Cristin Milioti (How I Met Your Mother) will also make an appearance as Sofia Falcone, the villainous daughter of Gotham’s previous crimelord Carmine Falcone.
The Batman changed several things about Falcone, but he was still portrayed as the greedy criminal that he’s always been in the comics. If his daughter is even remotely similar, she could pose a real threat to Penguin’s attempts to take control of Gotham – or perhaps become his greatest ally.
These ideas are supported by the later reveals that Carmine’s son Alberto Falcone will be appearing in the series played by Michael Zegen, and that the former rival kingpin Salvatore Maroni will also feature, played by Clancy Brown. Similarly, Michael Kelly has confirmed his character in The Penguin – known as Johnny Vitti – is the underboss of the Falcone crime family, meaning he’ll no doubt also play a role in the power struggle that emerges in the wake of Carmine’s death.
It’s also been reported that Shohreh Aghdashloo (The Expanse) and Deirdre O’Connell (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) will play large roles in the series, but their characters haven’t been revealed (via Variety). Since Reeves hasn’t yet discussed which comics or stories he’s drawn inspiration from, it’s impossible to predict which DC figures will make appearances in The Penguin — but there’s bound to be some Easter eggs for long-term fans. Rhenzy Feliz (Runways) has also been cast in the series, as Victor Aguilar, who is reportedly a new character made specifically for the series.
Several other actors have also been revealed to be playing currently undisclosed characters in The Penguin, with the lineup reportedly including Mark Strong, James Madio, David H. Holmes, Theo Rossi, Craig Walker, Scott Cohen, François Chau, Carmen Ejogo and Jared Abrahamson. The range of this actor roster – and the acting strength of those within – sets an even more exciting precedent for The Penguin, promising a truly rich selection of characters in the series.
Will Robert Pattinson Be In The Penguin TV Show?
Robert Pattinson’s Batman is rumored to appear in The Penguin, but details haven’t yet been confirmed. Given the interconnected nature of these stories, it would definitely make sense for Pattinson’s Batman to show up, even if it’s only briefly, to connect The Penguin to the story of The Batman. Since nothing has been confirmed yet, it’s safe to assume that Pattinson’s appearance (if genuine) will be a surprise.
The Penguin TV Show Story Details
The Penguin teaser trailers provide further details regarding the show’s plot. The teaser appears to concretely confirm the series will cover Cobblepot attempts to gain further power in Gotham in the wake of The Batman movie ending, which saw The Riddler flood Gotham, plunging it into chaos. Notably, the idea of villains trying to take control of a semi-destroyed Gotham does bear some remarkable parallels to the Batman: No Man’s Land comic series, which also saw a series of Gotham’s rogues attempt to take sections of the city for their own.
Drawing from this series for inspiration for The Batman franchise would make sense with this in mind, partly because Reeves has always been adamant that DC’s comics are a hugely important factor when writing these cinematic adaptations. This would also make sense because the story involves villains popularly theorized to be in The Batman 2, like the Joker and Clayface, though Riddler does notably flee Gotham for the entire of this arc – but this last aspect wouldn’t need to be adapted into the film, especially taking into account its more gritty iteration of the DC villain.
HBO’s Sarah Aubrey has also shed a little light on the narrative of Reeves’ show, stating: “The goal of this is to show what Oz’s life is like and that’s very much in the streets of Gotham, trying to get up and over as only the Penguin can. As a hustler and a strategist with his own ambitions. It is a great example of having the time over eight episodes to tell a longer-arc character story with a lot of delicious twists and turns and new characters.” (via Variety)
Is The Penguin Part Of The DCU?
James Gunn’s new announcements about the DCU have confirmed that Reeves’ The Batman (and all related spin-offs like The Penguin) will exist outside of the main continuity under a section labeled ‘Elseworlds’. This means that no existing DCU characters will be appearing in these movies, which immediately shuts down any speculation about potential crossovers with Joker, Justice League, or any other DC properties that have links to Gotham City. This will be a completely separate project with its own story that doesn’t affect that wider DCU in the slightest.
The Penguin
Created by Lauren LeFranc, The Penguin is a crime-drama spin-off television series of 2022’s film The Batman. Set shortly after the events of The Batman, Oswald Cobblepot, A.K.A. the Penguin, begins his rise in the underworld of Gotham City as he contends with the daughter of his late boss, Carmine Falcone, for control of the crime family’s empire.
- Cast
- Colin Farrell , Cristin Milioti , Clancy Brown , Michael Zegen , Rhenzy Feliz , Alex Anagnostidis , Craig Walker
