The Batman Sequel Plans Were Turned Into Upcoming Penguin TV Series

The creatives involved with bringing The Batman to life seemingly knew they had a success on their hands, as they announced a variety of spin-off projects even before the film hit theaters, though writer/director Matt Reeves recently pointed out the plans for the Penguin TV series on HBO Max were originally conceived as being a sequel to this film. Speaking with Variety, Reeves noted he pitched a story centering around Oswald Cobblepot’s rise in Gotham’s crime world for a follow-up film, only for Warner Bros. to instead embrace the idea as a series. The Batman lands in theaters on March 4th.

The outlet noted that he mentioned “offhand” that a second The Batman film could focus on Cobblepot’s rise, and that the studio’s response was that “we want to do that as a show.”

While a Penguin series and a series focusing on the Gotham police department are both confirmed to be moving forward at HBO Max, the timeline of these projects, as well as what the future of Batman’s big-screen adventures might be, are yet to be determined. 

One reason that there might be ambiguity surrounding the future of the franchise is based on the previous approach to the DC Extended Universe that Warner Bros. demonstrated years ago, which included the announcement of multiple confirmed films within the sprawling franchise, regardless of how well initial installments performed with audiences or critics. Given that a variety of announced projects earned multiple delays, reimaginings, or complete cancellations, Warner Bros. likely wants to temper expectations to only move forward on projects that are thought-out and promising enough to announce and invest resources into. 

The Batman marks the first solo Batman film 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises, with Ben Affleck debuting as the Caped Crusader in 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. At the time, the plan was for Affleck to write, direct, and star in a solo Batman film at one point, before he first announced he would only star in the solo film, ultimately retiring from the role entirely. 

Reeves might be attached to potentially direct the Penguin series as well as a sequel to The Batman, but he also admitted that he didn’t know which project would move forward first. 

The Batman hits theaters on March 4th.

Are you looking forward to the Penguin series? Let us know in the comments below!