It’s like the movie that created it, Matt Reeves’ 2022 Batmannew HBO series The Penguin invites the viewer to enter the dark, seedy underbelly of Gotham City. There’s nothing bright and shiny about Oz Cobb (Colin Farrell) and his life on the mean streets—he may have comic book origins, but authenticity is the dominant voice here. That commitment extends to prosthetics as well. Sure, there are facial layers that make Farrell invisible, though The Penguin it also goes under the belt if necessary.
In the opening episode of the spinoff series, Cobb and his nemesis Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti) share a scene where he is arrested and tortured by a follower as he accuses him of his role in the death of his brother, Alberto. The questions are intense but the scene is made even more painful by the fact that Cobb is completely naked. The audience only sees his fleshy body from the side, but apparently care was taken to transform it everything of Farrell in character.
Speaking to Variety, Farrell explained that prosthetics designer Michael Marino, who also makes the facial and body prosthetics he wears while on the character, made something “naturally appropriate” for him to wear… down there. “I had a piece of velcro to stick to, and a nice retro tree,” says the actor, calling the prosthetic a source of “surreal discomfort.” Although she was fully covered, she felt so vulnerable that she covered herself with a towel between takes.
“That was the kind of strange psychological place you can find yourself in when you’re sailing something as powerful as self-defense,” he explained. “I felt incredibly exposed, even though I was nothing. I was completely covered, but I was covered by a naked man. And it’s not like I thought I was, but it had a strange effect on my person.”
The Penguin runs for a total of eight episodes, with new installments arriving Sundays on HBO and Max. Apart from Farrell and Milioti, the cast includes Rhenzy Feliz (as Victor Aguilar), Michael Kelly (Johnny Viti), Shohreh Aghdashloo (Nadia Maroni), Deirdre O’Connell (Francis Cobb), Clancy Brown (Salvatore Maroni), James Madio (Milos Grapa), Scott Cohen (Luca Falcone), Michael Zegen (Alberto Falcone), Carmen Ejogo (Eve Karlo), Theo Rossi (Dr. Julian Rush). Created by runner Lauren LeFranc.
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