‘The Penguin’ Series Ordered at HBO Max Following ‘The Batman’ Breaking $300 Million Worldwide
Matt Reeves’ Batverse is rapidly growing, especially now that The Batman has opened to excellent reviews and strong box office numbers. The Penguin is next… on HBO Max.
This is far from the first time we had heard about the potential show, but nothing was really set in stone. Now, Warner and HBO Max are fully committing to Reeves’ neo-noir Batman universe and have ordered a limited series that will expand on Oswald Cobblepot’s story — his role in The Batman, while somewhat important, was secondary to the main plot, but (without getting into spoilers) he’ll have a larger presence moving forward.
It seems like everyone involved in the pitch was on to something, as Colin Farrell’s performance has been universally praised, plus this iteration of the Penguin looks ripped straight from the pages of Batman comic books. DC’s official channels are saying this is more of a prequel story for Cobblepot, yet Matt Reeves’ statement appears to indicate this might fill the gaps between the film that just opened and the next major Battinson installment:
“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.”
The Penguin, which is the working title of the show, will be executive produced by Reeves, Dylan Clark, Farrell, and Lauren LeFranc, who also writes and serves as showrunner — she handled some of the best and most dramatic episodes in the entirety of Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD, so this is exciting news.
The announcement arrives shortly after the final (first weekend) box office numbers for The Batman have been locked. Right now, it’s sitting at over $300 million worldwide, making it the biggest Warner Bros. win since the pandemic started and the second biggest opening take of the COVID era. It’s also playing only in theaters, shifting away from the day-one HBO Max plans that defined WB’s major releases throughout 2021.
As a side note, we must briefly mention the major rework the previously announced Gotham PD series is going through; Matt Reeves is now saying the project has shifted to an Arkham-centric story with horror elements (which honestly sounds much cooler):
“We’ve actually now [moved] more into the realm of exactly what would happen in the world of Arkham as it relates coming off of our movie, and some of the characters … almost leaning into the idea of … it’s like a horror movie or a haunted house that is Arkham.”
However, the Gotham PD is said to be on hold instead of dead in the water, and with WarnerMedia throwing lots of cash at HBO Max and its projects, chances are it’ll end up happening somewhere down the road.
Francisco J. Ruiz is that guy who has watched Jurassic Park a thousand times and loves Star Wars. His hunger for movies is only matched by his love for video games. He graduated in English Studies from the University of Malaga, in Spain. As he keeps writing about what he enjoys (and doesn’t) for websites all over, he’s continuing his studies.
