“The Batman” director Matt Reeves recently told Entertainment Weekly that the series centering on the Gotham City Police Department and Arkham Hospital has been shelved after HBO executives suggested focusing more on “iconic characters” from the Batman universe. Reeves is expanding the universe he launched in “The Batman” to television, starting with this fall’s “The Penguin,” in which Colin Farrell reprises his role as the Gotham City gangster.
While we were writing the movie, [‘The Batman’]”I said to myself, 'Hey, you know what? I think there are some great shows we could make,' that's why I wanted to do our deal with Warner Bros.,” Reeves said of his desire to expand his Dark Knight universe.
A spinoff series of “The Batman” focusing on the Gotham Police Department was announced in July 2020 with the backing of Reeves and “Boardwalk Empire” creator Terence Winter, who subsequently exited the project in November and was replaced by Joe Barton in January 2021. Reeves said on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast in March 2022 that the original plan for a Gotham PD series was to draw inspiration from Sidney Lumet's “Prince of the City” and center the show on a corrupt cop in Gotham. The series was set to take place one year before “The Batman” as the Gotham Police Force deals with the rise of Batman and its own internal corruption.
“The story wasn't about Batman,” Reeves said at the time. “It was about a corrupt police officer. It was about the worst gang in Gotham being the Gotham City Police. [the cop] He would have found himself at a dead end, and he would have met Gordon, to whom he would have been compared. But it would have been a battle for [the cop’s] spirit.”
When the project failed to get off the ground, Reeves turned to another spinoff idea focused on Arkham Asylum. Antonio Campos came on board as a writer and showrunner for the series, but diverse It was reported earlier this month that plans for the show had been cancelled.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Reeves said that both spinoff ideas were shelved after HBO executives gave their guidance on where the Batman universe should go in its transition to television.
“They said to us, ‘We love what you’re doing, and we want to focus more on the iconic characters,’” Reeves said, adding that elements of the canceled Gotham PD ended up finding their way into “The Penguin.”
“The interesting thing is that the movie, at its core, feels like the person they’re looking for, who the Riddler is referring to, has to be the Penguin, who’s some sort of informant,” Reeves explained. “This movie creates a power vacuum, and because the Penguin is so underrated, people don’t see who he really is.”
The Penguin takes place one week after The Batman ended. The show is “the bridge between the two movies,” head writer and producer Lauren LeFranc told EW, referring to Reeves’ upcoming The Batman Part II. That sequel won’t hit theaters until 2026.
“We're heading straight into the second movie that Matt has planned,” LeFranc added.
The Penguin is set to premiere on HBO and stream on Max on September 19. The show's first season consists of eight episodes.
