Michael Kelly is awesome, but I think my favorite role of.his was the early seasons of House of Cards

Agreed. He was such a perfectly emotionless/sinister henchman.

Absolutely cannot wait for this show. Quick little interview segment that's definitely worth a watch…

pic.twitter.com/vQAUOC71YQ

— The Batman Film News 🦇 (@TheBatmanFilm_) February 16, 2023

Which means we'll probably start getting casting/villain announcements come summer-ish…

Matt Reeves’ ‘THE BATMAN — Part II’ starring Robert Pattinson begins filming this November.

(Source: @ProdWeek) pic.twitter.com/pnOYjBhD6Z

— Cinema Solace (@CinemaSoIace) February 23, 2023

Any bets on villain?

Think they trot the teased Joker out yet?

I'm hoping we get Dr Strange. He'd be a good villain for this moody Batman. + maybe Hush, some mafiosos, and another b-lister or 2.

I truly have no clue.

Reeves said that even though he set up the Joker in the first movie he feels no obligation to include him in the sequel. Said it was more of an easter egg than anything. Then again, since then, Barry Keoghan has been nominated for an Oscar, and his profile has only risen, so who knows.

The only other villain Reeves has mentioned is Mr. Freeze, but Freeze was used more as an example than anything, with Reeves saying that no one, no matter how outlandish, is off the table. Said it'd be a fun challenge to try and adopt someone like Freeze for a more grounded world, but I got the distinct impression that didn't necessarily mean Freeze was actually part of Reeves' plan.

Regardless, seeing as The Penguin is apparently supposed to, at least in part, lead to/set up The Batman sequel, I wonder if the villain will lean more toward the underground crime world depicted in the show (as opposed to, say, Poison Ivy or someone more outlandish). I don't even know if The Penguin will set up the villain at all - maybe just the overall circumstances of Gotham - but I would be surprised if there weren't at least hints or nods or clues planted throughout.

Firefly world be cool in this universe too. Or mad hatter, although he's probably a little too close to the riddler.

I know it won't happen, but I'd love to see a movie where Batman is having to navigate Gothams sewers after the flooding to find Mr Freeze, Killer croc, and the penguin. Maybe throw in clay face too

veryfuller said:

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I've always thought Poison Ivy could be done in a grounded way as an eco-terrorist…which could fit into this world well at this point. Gotham is going to be rebuilding a la New Orleans after Katrina, so all the environmental concerns about that could bring in someone like her to mix it up.

---

The first scene should be someone saying, "Hey why did we all go to an underground arena instead of up in skyscrapers to avoid the flood?"

Tangiently related, but has anyone played Gotham Knights? I'm playing it now and this game is absolutely atrocious. This is the Batman and Robin of video games.

Sex Panther said:

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Tangiently related, but has anyone played Gotham Knights? I'm playing it now and this game is absolutely atrocious. This is the Batman and Robin of video games.

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I don't find myself itching to play it but I do enjoy it. Following up the Arkham series is tough... I mean, Arkham City is one of the best video games ever made.

I mainly have issues with the character progression and crafting systems, which don't jibe with my play style at all.

Aggie_Journalist said:

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Any bets on villain?

Think they trot the teased Joker out yet?

I'm hoping we get Dr Strange. He'd be a good villain for this moody Batman. + maybe Hush, some mafiosos, and another b-lister or 2.

---

They teased Hush HARD in The Batman.

I thought Professor Pyg was the rumor for a while.

AliasMan02 said:

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Aggie_Journalist said:

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Any bets on villain?

Think they trot the teased Joker out yet?

I'm hoping we get Dr Strange. He'd be a good villain for this moody Batman. + maybe Hush, some mafiosos, and another b-lister or 2.

---

They teased Hush HARD in The Batman.

---

Yeah, but didn't they basically combine some of Hush's backstory with the Riddler? Hush would (probably) be a good villain, especially in this universe, but seems like it would be redundant.

I still think they do a Court of Owls story, but they are more of a plotline than an actual villain.

Quad Dog said:

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I thought Professor Pyg was the rumor for a while.

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That would be pretty hardcore and creepy. Probably a little too out there for a blockbuster movie.

Sex Panther said:

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AliasMan02 said:

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Aggie_Journalist said:

---

Any bets on villain?

Think they trot the teased Joker out yet?

I'm hoping we get Dr Strange. He'd be a good villain for this moody Batman. + maybe Hush, some mafiosos, and another b-lister or 2.

---

They teased Hush HARD in The Batman.

---

Yeah, but didn't they basically combine some of Hush's backstory with the Riddler? Hush would (probably) be a good villain, especially in this universe, but seems like it would be redundant.

I still think they do a Court of Owls story, but they are more of a plotline than an actual villain.

---

I think Hush is more a trilogy wrap-up than a second film. He could also wrap into other things, like Court of Owls or be a mastermind type. He's pretty unique in that he's a Bruce Wayne villain vs a Batman villain.

https://instagr.am/p/CpST0SQurEf
Caption reads: "The first day of shooting THE PENGUIN is in the can. Only the compass can tell us in what Gotham direction we're going. My lips are sealed…#thepenguin #filmmaking#hbomax #productiondesign"

The first scenes filmed for The Penguin series seem to be in Carmine Falcone's apartment from ‘The Batman.’

Production designer Kalina Ivanov teased a photo that matches the flooring design of the original set.

(via: https://t.co/O5agxj93yC) pic.twitter.com/trq3eu0ldw

— The Art of The Batman (@thebatfilm) March 2, 2023

Maroni is dead before the events of The Batman, so this must mean flashbacks…

‘The Penguin’ has found its mob moss. Clancy Brown is set to recur as Salvatore Maroni in the Max Original limited drama series from Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios https://t.co/OaHWJDhQ8D

— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) March 3, 2023

And we are over two years away from the sequel

We'll have The Batman 1.5, aka The Penguin, in just under a year, though, to fill the gap.

Mob moss

Colin Farrell got back into prosthetics for #ThePenguin filming in NYC todayhttps://t.co/WGbavuLPB7

— JustJared.com (@JustJared) March 7, 2023

Think it’s funny that two Batman related villain projects are literally filming at the same time 😭 pic.twitter.com/IkGf0loTv9

— sabrina 🦇 (@nightwaynes) March 8, 2023

TCTTS said:

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Maroni is dead before the events of The Batman, so this must mean flashbacks…

‘The Penguin’ has found its mob moss. Clancy Brown is set to recur as Salvatore Maroni in the Max Original limited drama series from Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios https://t.co/OaHWJDhQ8D

— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) March 3, 2023

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Are we sure he was dead in the movie timeline? I thought he was in prison after Falcone "ratted him out". And took over his drug business.

Wes97 said:

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TCTTS said:

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Maroni is dead before the events of The Batman, so this must mean flashbacks…

‘The Penguin’ has found its mob moss. Clancy Brown is set to recur as Salvatore Maroni in the Max Original limited drama series from Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios https://t.co/OaHWJDhQ8D

— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) March 3, 2023

---

Are we sure he was dead in the movie timeline? I thought he was in prison after Falcone "ratted him out". And took over his drug business.

---

Oh wow, I just went back and looked and you're right. For some reason I thought Falcone killed both Thomas Wayne *and* Maroni, but he only ratted out Maroni, setting up the sting operation against him. Hell yeah.

So now instead of just Penguin vs Falcone's daughter, we get Maroni in the mix as well, who no doubt has a huge grudge against both of them. The Batman wiki says Maroni is likely serving a life sentence, though, so maybe he'll be influencing things from jail?

Sounds very interesting. But in the corrupt world of the Gotham city judicial system, a "life sentence" probably doesn't mean much.

Especially if all that corruption that was exposed in the first movie opens up all previous convictions for appeals.

He was sentenced based on a corrupt bargain between a crime lord and prosecutors that were on his payroll.

Even in our world that could be enough to get a conviction overturned.

Very true. This apparently starts literally a day after the movie ends, so I don't know how fast appeals/overturned convictions can be enacted, especially in the wake of the city being flooded, but I guess they could always skip ahead in time after an episode or two.

The GOAT has spoken…

Legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins on THE BATMAN’s cinematography

“The best cinematography hasn’t been nominated. It’s The Batman. That’s the best work in my view.”

(via Deadline) pic.twitter.com/6T6aWeHtcg

— BLURAYANGEL 🦇 (@blurayangel) March 12, 2023

Source: https://t.co/fmLPkE3YGK

— Cinema Solace (@CinemaSoIace) March 12, 2023

Sure... but the "Academy" knows better than Roger Deakins. It's not like he knows what he's talking about...

It really is BS that it wasn't nominated.

Robert Pattinson reportedly might not be able to appear as Batman in the HBO Max ‘Penguin’ series but can appear as Bruce Wayne

This stems from rights issues with Fox and Disney after the merger

(https://t.co/unhE7RL5d3) pic.twitter.com/iClP6uWvM8

— Geek Vibes Nation (@GeekVibesNation) March 14, 2023

Lots of reports coming out on this news... pretty big

Clayface will be in THE BATMAN PT. II according to sources

(via @DEADLINE) pic.twitter.com/p7oTsgb94x

— Lights, Camera, Barstool (@LightsCameraPod) March 29, 2023