Colin Farrell has revealed that he was not allowed to smoke as the Penguin in The Batman despite his efforts.
Colin Farrell may not have a huge role in The Batman but both he and Warner Bros seem to be making the most out of it with an HBO Max show on the way. With prosthetics that make him unrecognizable, the actor is clearly committed to making the role his own. One aspect of the character that Colin Farrell was not allowed to include, however, was him smoking a cigar.
Over the past 20 years or so, the film industry has been moving away from letting their characters smoke. Disney, for example, has had a ban on smoking characters that stretches as far back as 2007. The Netflix show, Stranger Things, also came under fire for how often the character, Sheriff Jim Hopper, was smoking cigarettes throughout the series. Now it appears this is stretching to antagonists in Warner Bros as well.
In a recent interview with Jake’s Takes, Colin Farrell revealed that he wanted Penguin to have a cigar but was refused at every turn:
“Big studios make big decisions around such things as the presence of cigarettes in films. ‘I can have it unlit! Just let me have it unlit.’ They were like, ‘No.’ [As if] a bunch of 12-year-olds are going to start smoking Cuban cigars because [the Penguin is smoking cigars in a movie.]”
You can see the full interview below:
Here is the synopsis for The Batman:
Two years of stalking the streets as the Batman (Robert Pattinson), striking fear into the hearts of criminals, has led Bruce Wayne deep into the shadows of Gotham City. With only a few trusted allies — Alfred Pennyworth (Andy Serkis), Lt. James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) — amongst the city’s corrupt network of officials and high-profile figures, the lone vigilante has established himself as the sole embodiment of vengeance amongst his fellow citizens.
When a killer targets Gotham’s elite with a series of sadistic machinations, a trail of cryptic clues sends the World’s Greatest Detective on an investigation into the underworld, where he encounters such characters as Selina Kyle/aka Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz), Oswald Cobblepot/aka the Penguin (Colin Farrell), Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), and Edward Nashton/aka the Riddler (Paul Dano). As the evidence begins to lead closer to home and the scale of the perpetrator’s plans becomes clear, Batman must forge new relationships, unmask the culprit, and bring justice to the abuse of power and corruption that has long plagued Gotham City.
Directed by Matt Reeves, The Batman stars Robert Pattinson as the titular hero, Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as the Riddler, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, Peter Sarsgaard as Gil Colson, Jayme Lawson as Bella Reál, with Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, and Colin Farrell as the Penguin.
The Batman will hit theaters on March 4, 2022. Stay tuned for all the latest news surrounding the film and Colin Farrell’s role in it and be sure to subscribe to Heroic Hollywood’s YouTube channel for more original video content.
Source: YouTube