A second teaser trailer has been released for “The Penguin” series, starring Colin Farrell.
The series will take viewers into the past of one of Batman’s famous villains, a criminal mastermind and mobster named the Penguin.
What is the premise of the series?
“The Penguin” series will pick up where the recent Batman film left off, according to Entertainment Weekly. In the movie, Gotham faced the criminal mastermind named the Riddler, who brought chaos and devastation to the city before being stopped by Batman.
“Audiences will recall that Paul Dano’s Riddler blew up the sea wall in 2022′s Robert Pattinson-fronted ‘The Batman,’” per Entertainment Weekly. “The new trailer for the Max series shows pockets of Gotham City still completely flooded by that event. Meanwhile, the criminal underworld is in chaos.”
Amid the chaos of the flooded city, plus the murder of crime boss Carmine Falcone, the Penguin will set out to take his place as “the leader of Gotham’s organized crime,” per ScreenRant. However, he will have to get through the Falcone family first.
In the trailer, the Penguin comments on the effects of the Riddler’s destruction. “Look at this,” he says. “What that madman did.” Later, as he observes the distress of the Falcone family, he notes: “The Falcones are still lickin’ their wounds. They’re distracted. Their business’ll be ripe for the taking.”
Notable characters include Alberto Falcone (Michael Zegen) and Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti) — Carmine Falcone’s children. Clancy Brown plays Salvatore Maroni, a former Gotham gangster.
“Rhenzy Feliz, Michael Kelly, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Deirdre O’Connell, Carmen Ejogo, François Chau and David H. Holmes round out the cast,” according to Variety.
Sofia Falcone seems to take center stage in the new trailer, as she is depicted saying, “The family thinks I’m broken. I’m not broken.”
She continues, “I refuse to let these old men push me aside again. So I’m gonna take from them now. And I’m gonna force them to their knees.” According to ScreenRant, Sofia may be the Penguin’s No. 1 adversary in the show as they both fight for power.
“‘The Penguin’ promises to be a dark, action-packed series full of intrigue,” per ScreenRant. “There will be many twists and turns as the Penguin forges alliances and does his best to come out on top, with Cobb possibly becoming the feared crime boss that he is in the comics by the end of ‘The Penguin.’”
When will ‘The Penguin’ be released?
The series will be released on Max this fall and will help “tide over” fans who are waiting for “The Batman Part II,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. “Back in March, the studio announced that The Batman Part II has been delayed a year and will now be released in October 2026.”
“The Penguin” will have eight episodes, per IMDb.
The series will also have a TV-MA rating, per Max, which is the equivalent of an R-rated movie. Because of the nature of the story, parents should be advised that the series will likely be violent and scary for children.
Watch ‘The Penguin’ trailer
Who is the Penguin?
The Penguin’s real name is Oswald Cobblepot, according to DC Comics. Based in Gotham City, the Penguin uses information to “blackmail, intimidate and corrupt anyone he can.”
The villain gets his name for his bird-like qualities, including his “awkward waddle.” Always well-dressed, the Penguin has a host of henchmen who do his dirty work.
“But when it comes down to a face-to-face,” per DC Comics, “expect him to unleash a deadly barrage from a variety of umbrella weapons and other ingenious devices — often taking the form of fowl. And when all else fails, the Penguin will fight as dirty as they come, hand to hand combat doesn’t ruffle his feathers at all.”
The character first appeared in Detective Comics No. 58 in 1941, around the same time other supervillains like the Joker, the Riddler and Two-Face were introduced.
Most recently, Colin Farrell’s depiction of the villain was seen in the 2022 film “The Batman,” which starred Robert Pattinson and Zoë Kravitz, among others. In the movie, the Penguin worked as the lieutenant of crime boss Carmine Falcone (John Turturro).