HBO’S The Penguin gets major updates for season 2 - and it’s linked to the Batman sequel

an image of Colin Farrell in the titular role of Oz "The Penguin" Cobb

(Image credit: HBO)

published 16 September 2025

Whether you’ve been at the centre of LA this week, or the middle of the Greek Ocean, you’ll probably have caught a whiff of Emmy-excitement, thanks to its historic, and iconic wins. We had Owen Cooper becoming the youngest ever winner, Tramell Tillman as the first black actor to win an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a drama series, Stephen Graham’s family’s reaction to his win, and of course THAT Severance easter egg from Britt Lower. Namely, it was full of pretty epic moments, and HBO’s The Penguin was no exception, scooping up 24 Emmy Nominations, winning 9 of those. Pretty impressive stuff.

The series, led by Colin Farrell as protagonist Oz Cobb, received an update for its second season, although it’s not the exciting kind… Whilst it was originally listed as a ‘limited series’ Matt Reeves - executive producer and writing supervisor - confirmed he was in talks with showrunner Lauren Lefranc about a second season of the hit series.

However, exciting as this news is to fans of The Batman spinoff, it looks as though the project will be on the backburner as DC prepares for The Batman Part II. The Robert Pattinson-led Batman is charging ahead, with its scheduled release set for 1st October 2027.

an image of Christina Miloti as Sofia Falcone in The Penguin

While chatting to Variety, HBO CEO Casey Bloys hinted that ideas are in place for the future of The Penguin, but The Batman Part II was taking priority. According to Bloys, Reeves and LeFranc “are talking about ideas. So I’m hopeful that there will be another story to tell." But, he also confirmed that The Batman Part II needed to “get going”.

It wouldn’t really be surprising for The Penguin to get a second series as it has been loved by critics and viewers alike, racking up an impressive 85% on Rotten Tomatoes from fans, and a 95% critics rating. Between Colin Farrell’s best acting to date (and it was already a high bar) to Christina Miloti’s award-winning Sofia Falcone, we reckon it won’t be too long before there’s an exciting update, even if we do have to wait for The Batman Part II to be released first. And in the meantime, DC has a pretty busy roster of upcoming shows - Supergirl or Clayface anyone?

The Conjuring is getting its own TV show

Hermione Blandford is the Content Editor for Shortlist’s social media which means you can usually find her scrolling through Instagram and calling it work, or stopping random people in the street and accosting them with a mini mic. She has previously worked in food and drink PR for brands including Johnnie Walker, Tanqueray, Gordon's, The Singleton, Lagavulin and Don Julio which means she is a self confessed expert in spicy margaritas and pints, regularly popping into the pub in the name of research.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.