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If The Penguin season 2 does happen, Colin Farrell's going to want a wardrobe change

The Batman actor spoke about the hours of makeup he needed to play Oswald Cobblepot - "I never want to put that f—ing suit and that f—ing head on again"

Will The Penguin season 2 happen? We don't know and HBO isn't saying. But after Colin Farrell's comments on September 12, we'd be willing to bet that if a second season of the Matt Reeves Batman spinoff does happen, its titular character might look a little different. Let us explain.

In a conversation with Total Film, Oscar nominee Farrell spoke frankly on what he liked least about playing The Penguin's head gangster Oswald Cobblepot - the intricate prosthetics. Widely praised as making Farrell "unrecognizable" for the role, the Penguin prosthetics were apparently quite the chore to get into, as Farrell so honestly told his interviewers.

"Don’t get me wrong – I loved it," says the actor, "but it got in on me a little bit [...] By the end of it, I was bitching and moaning to anyone who would listen to me that I f—ing wanted it to be finished."

The actor goes on to describe what he calls the "grumpy gratitude" he had following in the footsteps of Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito (who also went through extensive makeup effects to film Tim Burton's Batman Returns), but stands by the fact that "when I finished [filming] I was like, ‘I never want to put that f—ing suit and that f—ing head on again.'"

In Farrell's defense, his makeup routine to get into character does look rather grueling, a fact you confirm for yourself thanks to Max's official Twitter/X account. The Penguin's home streamer posted a video of the actor's transformation the same day he spoke about it to Total Film - check it out here.

So where does this leave a possible season 2 for our buddy Oz? Is Colin Farrell so sick of the costume that he won't be getting back into it?

"[Showrunner Lauren LeFranc] said, ‘Look, if I could find a way that makes sense, would you talk about it?’ And I said, ‘Absolutely,'" the actor told his interviewer. 

Though he did go on to clarify: "And maybe in a year I would."

The Penguin takes over Gotham (and your TV) September 19. Stream it on Max.


He is vengeance, he is the night, he is... one of Popverse's favorite subjects. Learn how to do a Dark Knight movie marathon right with our Batman movie guide, and for the true World's Greatest Detectives out there, dive deep into the heart of Gotham City by getting to know Batman with Popverse.

Grant DeArmitt

Grant DeArmitt: Grant DeArmitt (he/him) likes horror, comics, and the unholy union of the two. As Popverse's Staff Writer, he criss-crosses the pop culture landscape bringing you the news and opinions about the big things (and the next big things). In the past, and despite their better judgment, he has written for Nightmare on Film Street and Newsarama. He lives in Brooklyn with his partner, Kingsley, and corgi, Legs.

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