The Penguin TV Show: Cast, Story Details & Everything We Know So Far

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 Colin Farrell’s 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 easily 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.

The Penguin Trailers & Updates

The official trailer for The Penguin released on July 28, 2024, and provided a solid look at what to expect from the upcoming DC series. The trailer begins with an introduction from Colin Farrell, before showing Oz with his mother before swiftly cutting to some of his criminal exploits, showing him dealing with the aftermath of Carmine Falcone’s death.

That said, The Penguin has released a range of promotional clips, with its first major release being a teaser trailer in April 2023:

The newest addition to these is the Welcome To The Penguin teaser released on September 9, 2024, which provides some exciting snapshots from the upcoming series, and also gives a look behind the scenes, including interviews from figures like Matt Reeves and Colin Farrell:

The Penguin Latest News

The Penguin – Batman’s Spin-Off TV Show Explained

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

The first episode of The Penguin will debut on September 19, 2024, airing at 9PM ET on HBO and Max. Following this, the show will release the rest of its 8-episode run weekly on Sundays, with the season 1 finale releasing on November 10, 2024. This means the series will be releasing for close to two months, hopefully ensuring audiences can enjoy catching new plot twists and reveals on a weekly basis as 2024 begins to wrap up.

This release date aligns with previous estimations of The Batman show spinoff releasing in Fall 2024, and means the show releases close to the DC Universe’s first release, Creature Commandos, which is set to come out only a few months later. Interestingly, The Penguin will release at the same time as the MCU’s Agatha All Along show also, since the latter debuts on September 18 and runs until November 6. However, since the respective installments are very different both tonally and in terms of story, it’s unlikely this will negatively impact the audience for either.

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

Farrell will obviously be returning as Oz Cobb (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 crime lord Carmine Falcone, who looks to be fighting to reclaim her father’s empire.

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. Interestingly, the trailers for the series have also shown that Sofia has already taken on the Hangman killer persona that she becomes in the comics in order to avenge her father, with this explaining why she was incarcerated in Arkham before the story begins.

The idea the Falcone empire will be at the core of The Penguin has been 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 joined The Penguin cast, as Victor Aguilar, a new character made specifically for the series, and who appears to be Penguin’s protege.

Several other actors have 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. With The Penguin serving as the bridge between The Batman and The Batman – Part II, it would make sense if the show shed some light on the Dark Knight’s story during this interim period, even if that’s explored not by directly having him feature in the show, but rather via characters discussing what Gotham’s hero has been up to and where he’s been seen since The Batman‘s ending.

It’s also worth keeping in mind that Sofia Falcone is the half-sister of Selina Kyle, which could mean that Catwoman’s appearance is more likely in the series, though this could be tied into having Batman appear. While Kyle left Gotham at the end of The Batman, it’s possible her learning the remaining Falcones are destroying Gotham in an effort to take Carmine’s place could be enough to bring her back, or otherwise lend any information she has on this part of her family to the Dark Knight in order to help him restore order.

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 Cobb’s 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 No Man’s Land 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.

However, the depiction of Sofia Falcone having her Hangman killer persona from the comics also supports the idea that The Penguin will be taking from Batman: Dark Victory – wherein Sofia dons this mantle – in some capacity, and that the story may feature her in a more central capacity. The trailer tease that Sofia is only recently released from prison when she and Oz cross paths again, and her release coinciding with her father’s murder may cause the character to either seek vengeance or strive to gain his place in Gotham’s underworld.

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 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.

In many ways, The Penguin is perhaps one of the most crucial projects in terms of making the Elseworld spinoff concept clear to audiences, as the gritty Sopranos-esque show is clearly tonally different to what is generally expected from superhero fare. In this sense, the show not only helps to further the world of The Batman, but also assist in fleshing out what the overarching landscape of DC’s on-screen future looks like, since this will include Elseworld series that don’t tie into the main DC Universe timeline.

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