‘I was watching them all at the end’: Colin Farrell reveals the stark decompression measure he had to take while filming ‘The Penguin’

Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne was the gift we never knew we needed, but The Batman gave us even more than just a brooding superhero. Enter Colin Farrell, who has become so synonymous with the Penguin that we can’t imagine him not scheming to ruin Gotham from within.

When The Batman hit theaters in 2022, everyone knew we were in for a ride. Seeing Pattinson on screen again with his odd persona felt like a gift straight from Hollywood. But having such a strong supporting cast for Gotham’s other iconic characters was the icing on the cake. So much so that Oswald Cobblepot, unexpectedly, became the film’s comedic relief.

This surge in popularity among fans quickly earned Colin Farrell his small-screen debut in the DC universe. On Sept. 19, the first episode of The Penguin premiered on Max, and surprisingly, it received incredibly positive responses from both DC fans and new viewers alike. However, the show adopted a much darker tone than the version of the Penguin we saw in 2022 — which was an unexpected turn.

To everyone’s surprise, the series ended up with a much gloomier, almost oppressive atmosphere than expected. Even Farrell found it difficult to separate himself from the grim, Soprano-like scripts. While some DC actors are known for method acting, immersing themselves fully in their roles, this wasn’t the case for Farrell — thankfully.

In an interview with AP Entertainment, Farrell admitted that to decompress and mentally distance himself from the intensity of his work, he turned to… Toy Story. In fact, he wasn’t even too selective. According to the Irish actor, he “started watching Pixar films at the end of the working day” just to have “something light and beautiful” to come back to.

The Lobster actor also described the set and atmosphere of the series as “borderline nihilistic,” and if you’ve watched the first episode, this isn’t surprising. In the one-hour premiere, we’ve already caught a glimpse of the dark, mob-thriller vibe that lies ahead, making it a fitting start to the Spooky season.

Though it has just debuted, The Penguin has been a long time in the making. After its prequel film hit theaters, the series was greenlit almost immediately, but it wasn’t until 2023 that it received its official title, named after Gotham’s mob villain. Despite the wait, the star-studded cast was enough to keep fans eagerly anticipating the first episode.

We already knew Colin Farrell would return to reprise his role as Oswald Cobblepot, but the rest of the cast is just as spectacular. Cristin Milioti, whom you might recognize from How I Met Your Mother, takes on the role of Sofia Falcone, the daughter of supervillain Carmine Falcone, whom we last saw in The Batman.

Joining these two leads are Myles Humphus (The Equalizer) as Dom Gigante, Theo Rossi (Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi) as Dr. Julian Rush, and David H. Holmes (High Fidelity) as Nick Fuchs. The series will feature a total of eight episodes, each running about an hour. The first episode is now available on Max.