I swear that casting news for Matt Reeves’ The Batman is fast becoming my favorite entertainment news to report. According to “Deadline”, Colin Farrell is in talks to play The Penguin in the new take on The Dark Knight while “The Hollywood Reporter” is reporting that king of motion capture, Andy Serkis, is in talks to play Alfred Pennyworth.
Negotiations are still ongoing but if Farrell accepts, he’ll round out a trio of villains in the film played by Paul Dano as The Riddler & Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman. Robert Pattinson is taking on the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman this time around.
Warner Bros. is negotiating with the actor currently who is no stranger to playing a comic book villain. He took on the role of Bullseye in Daredevil back in 2003. Farrell has really diversified his filmography in recent years with roles in Dumbo, Widows, Roman J. Israel Esq, The Lobster and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
Jonah Hill was at one point in talks to play either The Penguin or The Riddler, depending on the source, but those talks fell through. We will update the status if Farrell ends up officially landing the role.
As for Andy Serkis, if negotiations go as planned, he would be reteamed with director Matt Reeves who directed the actor in two Planet of the Apes movies. Serkis is also no stranger to the world of comic book films having played the villain Klaue in 2018’s Black Panther for Marvel Studios. The actor will also step behind the camera to direct Venom 2 which means he has a pretty busy slate coming up.
The Batman is slated for release on June 25, 2021
