Production on Matt Reeves' The Batman is currently on an indefinite hiatus due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and save for a few set photos of Robert Pattinson in the Batsuit and cast confirmation, not a whole lot is known about what to expect from the highly-anticipated DC superhero film.
While doing press for Disney+'s upcoming original movie Artemis Fowl, Golden Globe-winner Colin Farrell (Minority Report; Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them) shared details on joining the DC Films Universe and about his role as The Penguin.
Based on the actor's comments, it doesn't sound like he'll have a big role to play in this chapter of the Batman saga, although that is always subject to change in a future installment.
It’s all exciting. To be a part of that universe and just there are certain words that are part of my internal lexicon: Gotham City, Penguin, Joker, Batman, Bruce Wayne, Harvey Dent, all these things.
Tim Burton’s Batman was kind of my, no, I watched the Adam West TV show growing up actually as well. So Batman as a kid, yes very much, not in comic book form but the TV show I watched ardently when I was a child. And then in my teens I saw Burton’s version and loved it.
And then obviously I was a huge fan of what Chris Nolan did with that world and how he brought it back to life and gave it an immediacy and a contemporary significance. So just to be part of, again that folklore, that mythology, is again really cool.
I had only started it and I can’t wait to get back. The creation of it, the aesthetic of the character, has been fun and I really am so excited to get back and explore it. And I haven’t got that much to do. I have a certain amount in the film. I am not all over it by any means. But there are a couple of some tasty scenes I have in it and my creation and I can’t wait to get back. Yeah, I totally feel like it is something that I have not had the opportunity to explore before. It feels original and fun. But I am only at the start of the journey so I can’t wait to get back and really get into it.
With Pattinson as the headliner, Reeves has formed quite an all-star supporting cast consisting of Golden Globe-winner Jeffrey Wright (Westworld) as Commissioner James Gordon, Zoë Kravitz (Big Little Lies) as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Golden Globe-nominee Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood) as Edward Nashton/The Riddler, Golden Globe-nominee Andy Serkis (Black Panther) as Alfred Pennyworth, Golden Globe-winner Colin Farrell (The Gentleman) as Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin, newcomer Jayme Lawson as Bella Reál, 2x Golden Globe-nominee John Turturro (The Night Of) as Carmine Falcone and Golden Globe-nominee Peter Sarsgaard (Green Lantern) as Gil Colson.
Gil Perez-Abraham (Orange is the New Black), Charlie Carver (Teen Wolf) and Max Carver (Teen Wolf) have also been cast in undisclosed roles.
Plot details are being kept locked away at Arkham Asylum for now, but the film is rumored to be a loose adaptation of the popular DC Comics Batman stories The Long Halloween and Year One.
Matt Reeves (War for the Planet of the Apes) is directing from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mattson Tomlin (Little Fish). Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Greig Fraser will be behind the camera.
The Batman hits theaters June 25, 2021.