Summary
The Penguinseries release date has been delayed at Max. However,The Batman’s spinoff’s postponement won’t be as unbearable as expected.
The Batmansaga’s next chapter is a Max series following Colin Farrell’s Penguin as he rises to power in Gotham City’s underworld. In addition to being set only one week afterThe Batman,The Penguinseries will tie intoThe Batman 2, increasing fan excitement for the already-anticipated show.
While an official release date hadn’t been set for Max,The Penguinwas slated to premiere on the streaming series in Spring 2024. However, Max’s 2024 slate preview (viaMeghan O’Keefe) confirmsThe Penguinseries' release date has been delayed until an unspecified date in Fall 2024 due to the writers' and actors' strikes, the latter of which remain unresolved as of the writing. While disappointing, the news is likely unsurprising consideringThe Penguinseries filming was pausedjust over a month after the writers' strike started.
WhileThe Batman 2is arguably the more anticipated of the two projects,The Penguinis exciting in its own right because it’s the first spinoff in Matt Reeves' developing Batman Universe. This corner of the DC franchise plans to include spinoffs for various Batman villains, a Gotham City PD show, and an Arkham Asylum series, though there has been little movement on the latter two lately. Reeves’Batmantrilogy will exist outside of James Gunn’s DCU, meaning he can continue his shared universe without having to consider or account for the events in Gunn’s franchise.
While some fans believe having two Caped Crusaders on the screen simultaneously will confuse general audiences, others think havingtwo Batman franchises is best for the character. Depictions of The Dark Knight range from grounded and realistic to fantastical and out-of-this-world. While some fans enjoy both, others prefer one over the other. Having Reeves' grounded Batman universe and Gunn’s fantastic DCU existing simultaneously but independent of each other means all fans can be entertained.
That said, Reeves’The Batman 2is rumored to include Robin, so he’s seemingly open to introducing elements some fans consider silly. Still, Reeves will likely ground most aspects of the DC mythos, as is expected with rumored take on Clayface. Only time will tell how Reeves and Gunn’s respective DC Universes unfold, but most fans agree there’s ample reason to be excited for both.
The Batman
Cast
Directed by the visionary Matt Reeves, Robert Pattinson plays a dark, gritty and tormented caped crusader, looking to save his home from the corruption that eats at it, and the criminals looking to destroy it. With a stellar cast of Andy Serkis, Zoe Kravitz, Collin Farrell and Jeffrey Wright, The Batman takes a new approach to Gotham’s protector, one not seen since the Nolan trilogy.
MORE:7 DC Characters Who Would Fit In James Gunn’s DCU Chapter One: Gods and Monsters
