Colin Farrell likes to lose himself in a role. As the Penguin, he was completely MIA. Consider: It took over four hours each day to attach a pile of prosthetics to his face.
Tack on two fat suits and a new way to walk. He even shaved his head. And when filming was over, Farrell had to lose the bird.
“It took 45 minutes at the end of each day in the makeup chair to remove the pieces and makeup,” the soft-spoken Irish actor says. “I had to become Colin again.” Such is the plight of Gotham’s most wanted.
Farrell says big chances in midlife lead to exhilarating moments. “The first day in full Penguin costume with the makeup on was one of the best days I’ve ever had in my 25 years as an actor. It proved that even at age 48 you can still get giddy – and I’ve been around the block a couple of times,” the Dublin native says.
He debuted his archvillain in 2022’s Matt Reeves version of “The Batman,” but now it’s the time for the Penguin’s rule. The new HBO/Max series “The Penguin” offers eight, hour-long episodes that take place after the events of “The Batman.” It features Oswald “Oz” Cobblepot, an overweight, bald, petty criminal with a limp, turning himself into one of Gotham’s biggest gangsters.
“I didn’t know what I could do with the character, which was part of the joy. The not knowing,” Farrell acknowledges. “The amazing artists behind this show took me and created this beautiful thing that’s brilliant, dark, complicated and .