The Penguin, the acclaimed crime thriller starring Colin Farrell, has received a disappointing update regarding its future.
The HBO series, a spin-off from 2022's The Batman, explores the rise of Oswald "Oz" Cobb / The Penguin (Farrell) as he progresses through Gotham City's criminal underworld and comes into contact with the Falcone family.
Despite being billed as a limited series, the considerable critical and commercial acclaim afforded to The Penguin led fans to call for a second season, though it seems HBO has opted against a follow-up judging by its strategy for the upcoming 77th Primetime Emmy Awards.
Ahead of the ceremony on 14 September, HBO has officially submitted The Penguin for Emmy consideration in the Outstanding Limited Series categories, strongly indicating that they see the show as a one-off.
The update isn't necessarily terminal for the future of the show, however, as HBO have previously brought series' back for further episodes after such a move. Despite initially being billed as a limited series and being awarded at the Emmys, Big Little Lies returned for a second season in 2019.
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The disappointing update comes after Channing Dungey, the Chairman and CEO of Warner Bros Television Group and WBD US Networks, confirmed that there was nothing in the works regarding a second season, though he did remark "never say never".
"The Penguin is one of those things where – and it’s interesting, because when you talk with everyone involved, everyone is interested in possibly revisiting those characters and doing more – it was very much designed as a limited series," he told Deadline. "But I would never say never.
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"I think if we can get the creative stars to line up in the right way, and the talent is available – because we certainly wouldn’t want to do this without Colin and Cristin [Milioti] and that team – I would say it’s definitely a possibility, but there’s nothing in the works at the moment."
The development is sure to disappoint fans and critics, with the show receiving an impressive approval rating of 95% from 210 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. The performances of Farrell and Milioti were widely praised, while SuperHeroHype and Dynamic Duel described the series as a "masterpiece".
The Penguin is streaming on Max.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.
