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Colin Farrell & Paul Dano Slated To Battle R.Patz's Batman as The Penguin & The Riddler!

Written by Katie Marzullo. Published: November 07 2019

 

Whew, looks like Robert Pattinson’s Batman is gonna have his hands full if Matt Reeves and Warner Bros. have anything to say about it!

 

Typically, the Caped Crusader takes on either one or two villains per movie. But in the upcoming The Batman, he will have at least 3 villains to contend with, and all 3 of them are very familiar members of Batman’s infamous Rogues Gallery...

 

While we already knew Catwoman would be featured in this new iteration of the Dark Knight, we now know that The Riddler and The Penguin will be thrown into the mix as well. Zoe Kravitz has been tapped to play Catwoman, and the other two roles have either been confirmed or are nearing it.

 

Paul Dano looks to be our new Riddler, which seems like an appropriate fit. Dano is adept at playing quirky, on-the-edge characters, and that certainly describes The Riddler. The role was previously brought to life on the big screen by none other than Jim Carrey in 1995’s Batman Forever. Those are some pretty big shoes to fill, but I think Dano is up to the task.

 

As for The Penguin, WB decided to go in a more unconventional direction by casting Irish hottie Colin Farrell. Now, don’t get me wrong, Farrell is a great actor and has shown plenty of versatility in the past, but this is starting to feel like a Johnny Depp scenario, where the studio stunt-casts a handsome actor for a quirky role. The Penguin, as we know, isn’t named that arbitrarily. His whole origin story revolves around being unattractive and an outcast, and he turns to a career in crime (and birds) as a result. Casting a dreamboat as this character seems to miss the point (and deprives a less-conventionally attractive actor from having a shot at this plum role), but who knows, maybe they are taking this character in a way new direction, and he receives his nickname through… I dunno, being a big Pittsburgh Penguins fan? Anyway, the last on-screen portrayal of The Penguin was done by Danny DeVito in 1992’s Batman Returns (which also featured Michelle Pfeiffer’s iconic Catwoman), and Robin Lord Taylor played a younger version on Fox’s “Gotham”.

 

 

 

Jonah Hill was reportedly in talks for one or both of these roles, and honestly he could have been a great fit for either, but he ultimately passed on the project.

 

Meanwhile, Andy Serkis has boarded the production as Bruce Wayne’s trusted butler/advisor/guardian Alfred Pennyworth, and I for one am always excited when Andy gets to play a role as himself and not get mo-capped over! Jeffrey Wright is also confirmed as Commissioner Gordon.

 

Rumor has it that this is not even the full slate of villains Batman will be encountering in this movie… Dare we hope for a Joker appearance?! Stay tuned!

 

The Batman is scheduled to hit theatres in 2021.