Before Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” opened in theaters in March 2022, there was a lot of discussion online surrounding the movie’s rating. Many comic book fans were hoping to get the first Dark Knight movie with an R rating, but the film earned a PG-13 nonetheless. The universe of “The Batman” is expanding with the upcoming Max series “The Penguin,” starring Colin Farrell as Gotham City gangster Oswald Cobblepot. The actor recently told MovieZine that the series is “incredibly violent,” which should appease the “The Batman” fans who wanted an ultra-violent R-rated cut of the film.
“It was a long and really wonderful experience,” Farrell said about filming “The Penguin” series. “It’s dark; that’s what I can tell you about it. It’s really dark. It’s really heavy, I think— it certainly was doing it. Which is not to say I didn’t have fun, I had an amazing time doing it. It’s incredibly violent. It’s one man’s rise to what he’s always dreamed of inhabiting, which is a certain power or social status.”
“The death of Carmine Falcone at the end of [‘The Batman’] leaves this vacuum in Gotham to be filled, and so there are various people that are grabbing for that power,” the actor added. “This is Oswald’s journey trying to rise to the top through extraordinary obstacles.”
Joining Farrell in “The Penguin” are Cristin Milioti as Carmine Falcone’s daughter Sofia, Michael Zegen as Carmine’s son Alberto and Clancy Brown as Salvatore Maroni, one of Gotham’s former top gangsters. The series comes from showrunner Lauren LeFranc, best known known for “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” Reeves is attached as an executive producer.
Back in February 2022, ahead of “The Batman’s” theatrical release, Reeves said he always intended for his movie to get a PG-13 rating and stressed that no R-rated cut of “The Batman” existed.
“In my mind, the movie was always going to be a gritty, edgy, noir, thrilling spectacle that was PG-13,” Reeves told Den of Geek. “That was always what it was, but I always knew that we’d be pushing the limits of what that could be, and so we didn’t really have to cut anything… I’m happy we got the rating because I want people to be able to come to see the movie.”
“The Penguin” will be being streaming on Max sometime this fall. It’s unclear whether or not Farrell will reprise the character in “The Batman Part II,” which is once again being directed by Reeves and will feature Robert Pattinson as the Caped Crusader. The sequel’s release was recently delayed by a year and will now open in theaters on Oct. 2, 2026.
