What if we did The Sopranos, only in Gotham? This appears to be the working premise behind the upcoming DC original series The Penguin, coming to the Max streaming service in September. Based on the new trailer for the show that just dropped, it will take place in the immediate aftermath of the events of Matt Reeves’ outstanding Batman movie, The Batman. Only, from what we have seen so far, Robert Pattinson’s Dark Knight won’t be part of the series. And after looking at the full slate of footage that’s part of this marketing reel, I’m not sure I’ll miss him all that much.
Take a look above at the full trailer for Colin Farrell’s crime saga, The Penguin.
One of the more interesting approaches of the DC cinematic world moving forward is how stories will branch from movies to television, allowing storytellers to expand on mythology without waiting for a window to open up at the multiplex. Marvel Studios has been wrestling with the best way to do this using their Disney+ television series for characters like Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen), Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), and Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani). And when James Gunn revealed plans for his rejuvenated DC universe, he made it clear that they would be using shows as well as movies to introduce new characters and build out worlds.
The Penguin, however, is expanding on a storyline that – as we understand it – is an Elseworld property… mainly because Gunn and producer Peter Safran inherited the Matt Reeves Batman series, and didn’t want to kill it off given the critical and financial success of the movie. Like Joker, Reeves The Batman is getting a sequel. And now this series on Max will help to expand the world.
For the time being, there looks to be more than enough happening in The Penguin to not have me miss Robert Pattinson’s caped crusader showing up. Following the catastrophic events at the conclusion of The Batman, there looks to be a power struggle amongst the criminal elite. Carmine Falcone (John Turturro) was murdered by The Riddler (Paul Dano), and the gangster vacuum is now being filled with potential leaders… chief among them being Oswald Cobb, aka The Penguin (Colin Farrell).
We have plenty of fascinating new characters who can carry the drama. In addition to Farrell, who is mesmerizing as Cobb, The Penguin looks to beef up the involvement of several key characters from the Batman mythology, including Salvatore Maroni (Clancy Brown), Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti), and Johnny Viti (Michael Kelly). And I don’t miss Batman. Though, given the number of explosions and conflicts that we see in the latest full trailer for The Penguin, I’d be shocked if Pattinson’s Dark Knight doesn’t appear in at least one scene over the course of the series.
Given the fact that Matt Reeves’ The Batman: Part II has been delayed until October 2, 2026, I’m happy that we have at least one story in this decrepit universe to anticipate. As for the rest of the DCU, and main storyline spelled out by James Gunn, it will begin in December of this year with the animated series Creature Commandos, also coming to Max. So keep your subscription up to date.
