Colin Farrell To Star In The Batman Spinoff Series

It looks like Colin Farrell is getting his own The Batman spinoff series around The Penguin. This world is really building out in a big way

By Doug Norrie | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

colin farrell penguin the batman

When Robert Pattinson hits the big screen as the Caped Crusader in The Batman next year, it is going to open up a whole new world of Gotham, rebooting the franchise around the character. That’s going to include all new faces for iconic comic book characters and there are all kinds of plans to open up this world in a big way. One of the new folks is Colin Farrell who will be playing Oswald Cobblepot/ Penguin in this movie. And this won’t be a one-off for the actor in the role either. Variety has it that Farrell is signed on to star in a spinoff series around the character for HBO Max. It’s just another sign that this new Batman world is going into full expansion mode. 

While the details around the Colin Farrell- The Batman series are a little light, we do know some things about how it will take shape. Apparently, this show will center on Farrell as Penguin in his rise to power over the criminal underworld in Gotham City. It could be that this transformation/ rise will begin during the events of The Batman and then carry over into the series. It’s not totally clear just how big of a role Farrell has in this first run and it’s already known that he isn’t the main antagonist. But he is featured numerous times in the early trailers, so he will have some part in the story that’s more than just a cameo. Writer Lauren LeFranc is handling the initial script after having worked on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Impulse. 

From the early looks, Colin Farrell is nearly unrecognizable as Cobblepot/ Penguin, looking weathered and off-putting already. The Batman could begin to detail his further transformation into the fully villainous character before it is all said and done. There is some chance this The Batman spinoff series will take place before or after the events of the movie though. Either one likely works considering the amount of world-building they are doing here. From a transformative perspective, seeing the “regular” version of Colin Farrell might be an easier lift. But it likely has more to do with how this character fits into the overall world. 

the batman

And the Collin Farrell-led The Batman spinoff series isn’t the only one in the works. There has already been an announcement about another show, this one centered on the Gotham Police Department. The Batman writer-director Matt Reeves is handling the initial script and it stands to reason that we see Jeffrey Wright in the lead role. He’s playing James Gordon in this first movie. Plus, a planned sequel for the movie is already in the works.

In addition to Robert Pattinson, Colin Farrell, and Jeffrey Wright, The Batman is set to introduce a number of other well-known characters as well. For starters, Zoe Kravitz will play Selena Kyle/ Catwoman. There have been rumors of her getting her own production in the near future. And the primary antagonist for this film will be Paul Dano as The Riddler. By all accounts, they’ve taken a very dark tact with this sometimes jokey character. Rumor has it that he’ll be more of the murderous serial-killer psycho variety. And it won’t be long until we get our first true look at all of these characters. The Batman is set to hit the big screen on March 4th of next year.