Colin Farrell Tells Us The Real Reason Why His Batman Villain Hates The Nickname The Penguin

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His name is Oswald Cobb. But everyone in the Gotham crime world refers to him as The Penguin. He’s a seminal villain in the classic Batman Rogue’s Gallery, and has been for decades. When Colin Farrell assumed the role in Matt Reeves’ Oscar-nominated The Batman, he reinterpreted Oz as a manipulative nightclub owner who wields power over the mob bosses in town. Not a lot happens in Gotham without Oz knowing about it. But what Farrell also knows is that Oz hates his nickname, The Penguin.

The Penguin is a riveting new crime thriller arriving on the Max streaming service that expands on the world created by Matt Reeves, and gives Colin Farrell a breathtaking showcase for his magnificent portrayal of Oswald Cobb. We will learn a LOT about Oz throughout the course of the eight-episode run, which begins streaming on Thursday, Sept. 19. Most of that, I need to keep secret, so that you can discover it over the course of the show. But what’s clear, both from the movie and the new show The Penguin, is that Oz hates his criminal nickname. And when I asked Colin Farrell during a recent press day why Oz feels that way about it, the actor told CinemaBlend exclusively:

It's never been used in any way but a derogatory way. Anyone that uses it – whether it's Michael Kelly's Johnny Viti, or whoever it may be in the show – they're using it to put him down. And he's somebody that… he's been put down a lot in his life. He's been pushed outside of the communal experience. And he's been made to feel like a quote unquote cripple. He's been called a cripple. He has been laughed at. So it's something that he doesn't truck with. At all.

I hadn’t considered, before watching the new show The Penguin, that there might be reasons why the criminals in Batman’s orbit wouldn’t take pride in the names that they carry in the underworld. The Riddler (Paul Dano) embraces his identity as he tortures Batman (Robert Pattinson) throughout The Batman, signing the notes that he leaves behind at his various crimes.

It’s different with Oz. He views himself as something else, and the nickname The Penguin is used to demean him, because of his limp. Because of his clubbed foot. And because it’s not a name he gave himself. As The Penguin showrunner Lauren LeFranc told CinemaBlend:

It's interesting because, obviously, our show's called The Penguin. But he doesn't really embrace that term. It feels derogatory to him, certainly in the beginning of the season. And in the vein of the way mobsters give each other nicknames, that's his nickname, but not one that he's really chosen for himself.

He will come to earn the nickname of The Penguin over the course of the eight-episode show, though. From what you can tell in the trailers for The Penguin, Gotham is cleaning up after the flood created by The Riddler, and there’s a power vacuum created by the murder of Carmine Falcone (John Turturro). Multiple families make a play for the head of the table, but Oz has various plans in place, some that involve Sophia Falcone (Cristin Milioti), and the other gangsters of Gotham.

The Penguin fits into a list of upcoming DC television projects, but it’s part of a standalone world from the universe that James Gunn is creating. That world will have upcoming shows like the animated Creature Commandos, and a Lanterns show that’s reportedly eyeing potential cast members. The Penguin, meanwhile, will serve as a bridge between The Batman, and the sequel that Matt Reeves will have in theaters in October 2026. So, be patient.