Colin Farrell’s HBO Max Penguin Spinoff Will Be ‘Like a Scarface Story,’ Says ‘Batman’ Producer
Say hello to the Penguin’s little friend!
After Colin Farrell confirmed that there is a “The Batman” spin-off for his character Penguin in the works at HBO Max, producer Dylan Clark has now hinted at the storyline, likening it to another gangster epic: “Scarface.”
“We’re doing one with Colin [Farrell, as Oswald Cobblepot], seeing Oz rise to power, almost like a ‘Scarface’ story,” “The Batman” producer Clark told SFX Magazine via Games Radar. “It’s exciting to do something like that just as a standalone, but it speaks to the character and our movie, so that you’ll go back to the movie [and say], ‘Oh, I see that backstory there, that line refers to this’.”
Farrell similarly shared details on the upcoming series with Entertainment Tonight.
“We have to get into what made him the man he is. And also, it will pick up where this film finished off, I think. I think it’ll pick up a little short time after the last frame of this film,” Farrell said. “We’ll get to go on a little kind of left turn off to the world of Oz and how he’s beginning to kind of dream of filling a potential power vacuum that may exist.”
The actor continued, “It’s a lovely, lovely character, and explores vulnerabilities. His violence is apparent, his propensity for violence and his ability to use it as a tool is apparent, but [also] to see we all have soft spots. Every single person. And to be able to find that location, dig around it would be fun.”
Farrell is the third live-action interpretation of the Penguin for the big screen, following Burgess Meredith’s take in the 1966 film “Batman: The Movie” and Danny DeVito’s turn as the eerie character in 1992’s “Batman Returns.”
Farrell noted that his character, while not the central villain of Matt Reeves’ “The Batman,” has minimal screen time — despite the hours required to transform into the famed nemesis of the Caped Crusader.
“I’m only in it for five or six scenes [as Penguin], so I can’t wait to see the film ’cause it won’t be ruined by my presence,” Farrell told MTV’s Josh Horowitz, as reported by MovieWeb. “It’s a freebie for me. I’ll get a little uncomfortable for the fucking nine minutes I have and then the rest I cannot wait to see how [writer-director Reeves] brought this world to life.”
Robert Pattinson, who plays Bruce Wayne, has hinted at future sequel films in the works, as echoed by Reeves. So far, there are two HBO Max spin-offs in development: Farrell’s Penguin series, and a Gotham Police Department procedural featuring Jeffrey Wright as Jim Gordon.
“The Batman” premieres March 4 in theaters.
