Why The Batman Universe Scrapped Penguin’s Comic Book Name

“That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet.” Okay, so maybe Oz Cobb rolls off the tongue a little easier than Oswald Cobblepot. Regardless, though, the titular character portrayed by Colin Farrell in The Penguin has lost a few vowels and consonants, but today the reason behind the shortening of the comic book icon’s name has been explained by director Craig Zobel. However, for those Batman fans who are hoping Oz is now somehow connected to the Court of Owls’ assassin William Cobb, well, Zobel isn’t letting that cat out of the bag to scratch up any spoilers. Zobel says in an interview with The Hollywood Handle:

“I can’t 100% answer that because I don’t know everything in Matt Reeves’ mind. But I would say that largely we all kind of felt like Cobblepot wasn’t a real person’s name [laughs], like how the Riddler was Edward Nygma – E. Nygma. It was kind of a silly name back in the day when that was okay because it was comic books for kids.

So, in some ways, I think the goal was to just try to find a real, rooted, a more grounded and rooted name. I also know that’s upset some fans, and I hope that they can forgive us and still like the show, because I think it’s not a huge sin, if there was one [laughter].”

Fans shouldn’t get too wrapped up in whether The Penguin will feature a connection between Oz Cobb (Farrell) and the Court of Owls’ assassin William Cobb from the comic books. What’s more disconcerting, or should be, is the fact that Robert Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne/Batman will NOT even be making a cameo in the HBO Original series — take that to the bank.

Batman & Bruce Are MIA in The Penguin

Sadly, creator and showrunner Lauren LeFranc isn’t trying to fool anyone. Despite The Penguin being set in Gotham City, and Colin Farrell reprising the beloved role from Matt Reeves’ The Batman (2022), Robert Pattinson isn’t showing up for even a cameo in the HBO Original series. It’s not a ploy, trick or otherwise. It’s a fact, and LeFranc set the record straight in an interview with GamesRadar+:

“I understand why people’s desire would be to have Batman, or to think that unless Batman’s in a show or a film, then it doesn’t have the same punch. To me, I think it packs a different punch. Matt’s films are through the lens of the Batman, so you’re high up, looking down on the city. It’s a different perspective.”

LeFranc said during the same sit-down:

“I don’t feel like it’s missing something fundamental. I feel like it’s an extension of what is fundamentally there. We know this is the world of Batman. You’re going down a different alley. So, the spectre of Batman [Pattinson] is there. The spectre of the Riddler [Paul Dano] is there. The spectre of everything that happens in the last movie is there. It informs it. And it’s exactly where we begin.”

With or without the Bat flying around in the Penguin’s belfry, the role still took a toll on Colin Farrell. However, Oz Cobb could go down as one of Farrell’s best performances thanks to an eight-episode arc that will allow the Oscar-nominated actor (The Banshees of Inisherin) to waddle with real swagger on-screen as the gangster attempts to make his own power grab to control Gotham City.

The Penguin premieres Thursday, September 19 at 9 p.m. EDT/PDT on Max (per Deadline), with plenty of repeat showings to follow on HBO over the weekend. The HBO Original series then shifts gears to Sunday nights for Episode No. 2, which drops on September 29 at the same time. However, new installments of the show can then be seen on both Max and HBO each week up until the epic finale on November 10.