‘The Penguin’: Colin Farrell Says Matt Reeves Is Meticulously Planning ‘The Batman’ Spinoff Series But Won’t Be Directing It

Director Matt Reeves breathed new life into the “Batman” franchise with his gritty, David Fincher-inspired take on Gotham City with “The Batman.” And Warner Bros. is so impressed with Reeves’ work that they have a feature film sequel along with two television spinoffs in development. The two HBO Max shows have one focused on Colin Farrell’s Gotham gangster Oswald Cobblepot, aka, The Penguin and the other’s a long-gestating Gotham City PD series that’s reportedly “evolved” into an Arkham Asylum project. 

READ MORE: Warner Bros. Announce A ‘Batman 2’ Sequel With Matt Reeves & Robert Pattinson

And Reeves appears to be creatively involved in both shows, as Farrell revealed to Entertainment Tonight on the red carpet for Ron Howard‘s cave rescue film “Thirteen Lives.” The Irish actor revealed that Reeves is not only involved with the writing of the series but is seemingly handpicking the show’s directors. However, Farrell also clarified that it won’t be Reeves taking on any directing responsibilities for “The Penguin.”

“Matt’s up to his bollocks, you know, hovering over the keyboard and just planning the story because he’s just so meticulous,” Farrell said. “He’s so obsessive about what he does, but he’s all over [HBO Max’s] The Penguin [series] as well. I mean, he’s not gonna direct it but he’s all over the structure of the scripts and who’s gonna direct them. And so, it’s exciting,” Farrell told ET. 

Of course, Farrell’s still game for the untitled sequel that is also in the works. “Oh my god, you kidding me?!” Farrell asked rhetorically. “It’s so much fun, are you joking [with] me? I’ve been around the block man. That was an easy sport, I mean … it was a joy.”

While fans will have to wait a while before they learn more about “The Penguin” and Reeves’ other “Batman” projects, Farrell added that the DC Comics streaming series aims to begin shooting early next year. That lines up with a quote from the actor earlier in the month suggesting that cameras could begin rolling around February. So, in theory, Batman fans may catch a glimpse of “The Penguin” by next summer or fall before its actual debut on HBO Max.