Well before Robert Pattinson was announced as the next Bruce Wayne, aka Batman, and became the first addition to director Matt Reeves’ upcoming superhero film “The Batman,” Josh Gad had been associated with the highly-anticipated production. The actor was rumored and speculated as one of the potential choices to play the villainous Penguin in the film. And according to a new interview with THR, it appears that much of that speculation can be traced back to Gad himself, as he admits that he was never really considered for the role.
READ MORE: ‘Frozen 2:’ Head Into The Unknown With This Surprisingly Mature Sequel [Review]
“Matt and I had a brief exchange about it, and the truth is that there was never really any serious attempt to play the role of The Penguin in ‘The Batman,’” Gad said. “There were talks along the way with DC about it. There were talks along the way with Matt about it. But, the truth is, I never went in to go discuss it. I never went on tape for it. Frankly, I think they made a really cool choice. I cannot wait to see Matt’s ‘Batman’ movie, and…for the most part, it’s been just a great laugh between the two of us.”
This admission comes after months of speculation (fueled by Gad) which had the actor as the main face associated with The Penguin. However, as we now know, Gad just loves to screw around with fans and was just teasing them for fun. Not a bad way to pass the time, we suppose.
Clearly, Reeves had other ideas in mind, as Colin Farrell has landed the role of Penguin in “The Batman.” Farrell is definitely not the first actor you might think of physically when you consider who might play the villain, but he’s a damn fine actor and will likely bring something very different to the role of the crime boss with very bird-like features. He’s definitely not going to be The Penguin, as portrayed by Danny DeVito in “Batman Returns.”
“The Batman,” sans Gad, will debut in theaters on June 25, 2021.
