When Warner Bros. Pictures released The Batman in March 2022, the studio wasn’t just launching a new Batman film series to run separate from main shared DC Universe continuity. The public later learned that this corner of the multiverse would also be explored on the small screen, with the first of these tie-in TV shows being centered on The Penguin, who’s been the Caped Crusader adversary in the comics for more than 80 years. Although Robin Lord Taylor had played Oswald Cobblepot as an integral character in Fox’s Gotham several years prior, this show, which will be released to HBO Max subscribers, puts Colin Farrell’s version of the character front and center after his time as a side antagonist.
Among the things we know about The Penguin is it takes place one week after the end of The Batman and follows Cobblepot’s rise to power in Gotham City’s criminal underworld now that his boss, Carmine Falcone, is dead. Needless to say such a journey is fraught with perils and people looking to take him off the proverbial board, and that was evident in the first trailer for the HBO Max series. Keeping that in mind, let’s go over all the actors who’ve been announced or reported to be in the miniseries’ cast, though fair warning, we don’t know who many of them are playing yet.
Colin Farrell
If you went into The Batman knowing nothing about it ahead of time, you likely wouldn’t have recognized Colin Farrell as Oswald “Oz” Cobblepot, with this being the character’s first cinematic depiction since Danny DeVito played him in Batman Returns. While there was initially speculation that The Penguin could be a prequel to The Batman, and thus allow for a younger actor to play the character, but Farrell will indeed be returning to the makeup and fatsuit to explore Oz trying to seize as much power for himself following Carmine Falcone being shot by The Riddler. It’s unclear if Oz will cross paths with Batman again in the series, although DC Studios co-head James Gunn has debunked the claim that Robert Pattinson could only appear as Bruce Wayne, assuming he shows up at all.
Cristin Milioti
If you’ve read Batman: The Long Halloween and Batman: Dark Victory, then you’re familiar with Sofia Falcone, Carmine Falcone’s daughter who returns to Gotham City to help her father figure out the identity of the Holiday killer targeting members of the crime family. The Penguin will also see Cristin Milioti’s Sofia returning home after a long time away, but with Carmine dead, she’ll instead battle Oswald Cobblepot for control of the criminal underworld. Milioti’s notable roles include Tracy McConnell in How I Met Your Mother, Sarah Wilder in Palm Springs and Hazel Green in Made for Love.
Michael Zegen
Sofia Falcone isn’t the only one of Carmine Falcone’s children appearing in The Penguin. Michael Zegen of Boardwalk Empire and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel fame has been cast as her brother, Alberto. In The Long Halloween, Alberto took credit for the Holiday killings, although it’s later clarified that there were at least two of those serial killers, and that Alberto may have been lying about his role in those events. It’s unclear if Zegen’s version will also wreak havoc on Gotham as Holiday or if he’ll simply be by his sister’s side while she wars with Oz.
Clancy Brown
Although Sal Maroni never appeared in The Batman, it was mentioned that he was arrested in the GCPD’s largest drug bust, though it was later revealed that he was set up by Carmine Falcone and corrupt individuals in Gotham’s government and police force. While it hasn’t been explicitly said if Maroni has been freed from prison following Carmine’s death or if he’ll be pulling strings while still behind bars, evidently he’ll be an important player in The Penguin. Clancy Brown has been cast as Maroni, and this is a man who goes way back with DC as the voice of Lex Luthor in the DC Animated Universe and having played General Wade Eiling on The Flash, among many other credits.
Rhenzy Feliz
Now we get into the actors who are part of The Penguin’s cast, but their characters haven’t been officially identified. In the case of Rhenzy Feliz though, it’s easy enough to deduce how he fits into the picture by watching the trailer. It looks like Feliz, known from Marvel’s Runaways and Encanto, is playing a young man who starts working for Oswald Cobblepot, though the gangster won’t hesitate to gut him “like a goddamn fish” if he gets out of line even once.
Michael Kelly
House of Cards fans will instantly recognize Michael Kelly for playing Doug Stamper, while others may know the actor more from projects like Unbreakable, Now You See Me, Person of Interest and Jack Ryan. Now he’s jumping into The Penguin, no doubt as a Gotham City criminal, although it remains to be seen if he’ll be allied with Oz or working against his interests. This is Kelly’s second time performing in a DC project, having previously played Steve Lombard in Man of Steel.
Shohreh Aghdashloo
From House of Sand and Fog and Renfield, to 24 and The Expanse, Shohreh Aghdashloo has been around the acting block, and now the time has come for her to lend her talents to DC. In the trailer for The Penguin, Aghdashloo appears to be playing a crime boss who’s displeased with Oz, as she watches as her goons get ready to stab him. Somehow he’ll be able to talk his way out of that predicament, and as Oz’s power and status in Gotham City increases, I won’t be surprised if he exacts revenge on her.
Dierdre O’Connell
Dierdre O’Connell is no stranger to the world of crime TV shows, whether we’re talking about her various different roles on Law & Order (most notably Dr. Valerie Knight in Season 20) or popping up in three episodes of Daredevil Season 3. You may also know O’Connell from her recurring roles on The Affair, The Path and Outer Range, but for The Penguin, we have yet to learn how she factors into the story.
James Madio
Along with various film credits to his name, James Mario is arguably best known for his roles as Bobby Lazzarini in USA High and Frank Percent in Band of Brothers, while more recently he played Carmine in The Offer, the miniseries about the making of The Godfather that can be watched with a Paramount+ subscription. Now we wait to see what’s in store for him during The Penguin.
Scott Cohen
Gilmore Girls fans know Scott Cohen for playing Lorelai Gilmore's love interest Max Medina, but as far as his more recent work goes, you might have seen him in Billions, The Americans or The Fix, among many other projects. It’ll be interesting to learn into how he fits into what’s happening in Oswald Cobblepot’s life as the events of The Penguin unfold.
Theo Rossi
Hernan “Shades” Alvarez, Theo Rossi’s character from Luke Cage, has something in common with Colin Farrell’s Oswald Cobblepot: they both sought to make bigger names for themselves in the criminal underworld after their bosses were killed. But if you din’t catch Rossi in that Marvel series, maybe you’re more familiar with him as Juan Carlos “Juice” Ortiz in Sons of Anarchy. In any case, it’s probably safe to assume he’ll be up to no good in The Penguin too.
Carmen Ejogo
We get a brief glimpse of Carmen Ejogo’s character In The Penguin enjoying a drink with Oz, but even if we assume they’re on friendly terms with one another, we know all too well how allegiances can shift in Gotham City. It’s worth noting that this will be Ejogo’s second time acting in a comic book project, as she also has an undisclosed role in Marvel’s Secret Invasion series. Additionally, she has genre cred from Alien: Covenant and the first two Fantastic Beasts movies.
François Chau
You might not know François Chau by name, but with the number of credits he’s accrued, it’s a good bet you’ve seen him in at least one thing, if not several. Film-wise, he played Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze and also popped up in Beverly Hills Ninja, Lethal Weapon 4 and Birds of Prey, while in TV, he’s appeared in Lost, K.C. Undercover, The Expanse and Last Man Standing, to name just a few shows. Along with his mysterious role in The Penguin, Chau is also starring in Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series.
David H. Holmes
Finally, we have David H. Holmes, who’s arguably best known for starring as Simon Miller in Hulu’s short-lived High Fidelity series. If you didn’t watch that, then maybe you caught his guest spots in shows like The Americans, Mr. Robot or Mindhunter. If not, then The Penguin will be as good as place as any to be introduced to him as a performer.
The Penguin will premiere sometime in 2024 on HBO Max, although by that point, it will have long been rebranded as Max. Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more news on its progress, and don’t forget that The Batman: Part II is slated on the upcoming DC movies schedule for October 3, 2025.
