Despite reliable sources claiming that Robert Pattinson will make an appearance as the Dark Knight in The Penguin spin-off series, Matt Reeves and showrunner Lauren LeFranc recently debunked these reports, explaining that they simply didn't feel the need to have Gotham's protector make his presence felt.
Now, LeFranc has elaborated on why they felt it wasn't a good idea to have Batman catch up with "Oz Cobb" (Colin Farrell) after the events of the movie, and it's partially down to the Caped Crusader not seeing Oz as a big enough threat to bother keeping an eye on!
"It's interesting, because Matt (Reeves) and I always talked about the fact that, in truth, his version of Gotham City is very grounded. Batman's not everywhere," she tells CinemaBlend. "It's a big city! And also, it has been established in the film that he doesn't really pay much attention to Oz. He doesn't think he's really worth paying attention to, in that regard. And so, honestly, we didn't really think in terms of this idea that Batman would be watching. We were just really more focused on following our characters on our show."
While we're sure Oz would disagree, this does make sense. In The Batman, Farrell's take on the classic DC Comics villain is not really taken very seriously by Bruce Wayne, Jim Gordon, or most of his criminal associates, which is why The Penguin will focus on the character rising through the ranks as he attempts to prove himself as someone they should never have underestimated.
There's a lot of speculation that Batman will appear, anyway, and this is all just an attempt to throw fans off the scent.
You can check out some new stills and posters for the show at the links below.
The Penguin also stars Cristin Milioti (Sofia Falcone), Rhenzy Feliz (Victor Aguilar), Michael Kelly (Johnny Viti), Shohreh Aghdashloo (Nadia Maroni), Deirdre O’Connell (Francis Cobb), Clancy Brown (Salvatore Maroni), James Madio (Milos Grapa), Scott Cohen (Luca Falcone), Michael Zegen (Alberto Falcone), Carmen Ejogo (Eve Karlo), and Theo Rossi (Dr. Julian Rush).
The eight-episode DC Studios drama series continues The Batman epic crime saga that filmmaker Matt Reeves began with Warner Bros. Pictures’ global blockbuster The Batman, and centers on the character played by Farrell in the film.
The series is executive produced by Matt Reeves, Dylan Clark, Colin Farrell, Lauren LeFranc, who writes and serves as showrunner, Craig Zobel, who directs the first three episodes, and Bill Carraro. Based on characters created for DC by Bob Kane with Bill Finger, the show is produced by Reeves’ 6th & Idaho Productions and Dylan Clark Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television, where Reeves and 6th & Idaho are under an overall deal. Daniel Pipski also serves as executive producer.