The lore of DC’s Batman has always been fascinating and fully developed. Now Max’s The Penguin dives even deeper into classic characters from the comic.
The last we saw Oswald “Oz” Cobblepot (Colin Farrell), he was watching the sun rise on the potential of a new empire. In Matt Reeves’ The Batman, Oz is just a lackey of Gotham’s most powerful gangster, Carmine Falcone (John Turturro). After his death in the film, it is Oz’s turn to rule Gotham. However, it will be a bloody struggle and one he may need allies in.
In The Penguin trailer, Oz makes an important visit to Blackgate Prison, where Falcone’s former adversary, Sal Maroni, is incarcerated. Beloved character actor Clancy Brown is in Maroni’s seat in The Penguin and brings a foreboding presence to the character. When The Penguin arrives, he just has one question.
“What is it you’re really after, Oz?”
Oz admits that he wants to destroy what is left of the Falcone empire, the very people who put Maroni in prison to begin with. Maroni is a significant character in Batman lore, another forceful presence in Gotham’s crime industry. He is mentioned briefly in The Batman when Bruce (Robert Pattinson) visits Falcone. Falcone accuses Maroni of being the person behind Bruce’s parents’ murders, though Alfred (Andy Serkis) later throws doubt into that narrative. The truth is, we know very little about what killed Bruce’s parents, but Maroni may have some answers.
Until then, it seems he will be a significant cog in The Penguin machine when the series airs on Max in September 2024. While incarcerated, Maroni has decades of history in the Batman comics, and his role will further be revealed when the limited series premieres.