Recent events have shown that having a spinoff from The Batman in development isn’t a guarantee it’ll actually happen, with Matt Reeves recently admitting that the Gotham City Police Department series was on hold, with another project focusing on Arkham Asylum stepping in.
Colin Farrell’s Oswald Cobblepot was one of the many highlights from the acclaimed superhero blockbuster, and he’s been more than willing to bury himself under the mountains of prosthetics required to bring the iconic villain to life. Thankfully, Deadline reports that The Penguin has officially been ordered to series by HBO Max.
After changing her Twitter bio the other day, Lauren LeFranc has been announced as the showrunner, with Reeves executive producing alongside Farrell and Dylan Clark. HBO Max head of original content Sarah Aubrey followed up the big news with a celebratory statement, which you can read below.
“We are thrilled to bring audiences a new version of this iconic DC character that they have never seen before. It is incredible to be working with Matt, Dylan and Lauren on continuing this story and to see Colin take his already exceptional performance in The Batman to the next level.”
Reeves was even more effusive in his praise, even though he wasn’t in much of a mood for divulging genuine specifics.
“Colin exploded off the screen as the Penguin in The Batman, and having the chance to thoroughly explore the inner life of that character on HBO Max is an absolute thrill. Dylan and I are so excited to work with Lauren in continuing Oz’s story as he grabs violently for power in Gotham.”
For the time being, The Penguin is still just a working title, but it’s likely to remain the show’s moniker as things continue to gather pace behind the scenes.