John Turturro rejected a return forThe Penguinafter his role inThe Batman, with his reasoning showing a misunderstanding for this section of DC Universe. Turturro played the character of Carmine Falcone inThe Batmanbefore Mark Strong was hired as his replacement inThe Penguin’s ensemble cast. Although Falcone was killed by Paul Dano’s The Riddler inThe Batman’s ending,The Penguinincludes flashbacks to before the events of the former, when the Gotham City gangster was at the height of his power.
These flashbacks link inherently toThe Penguin’s Sofia Falcone/Gigante. The crimes of Carmine’s past are integral to Sofia’s story as she reckons with what her father did to her; Carmine was revealed as the killer of several women during his reign of crime, pinning each of the murders on Sofia and sentencing her to Arkham Asylum, resulting in a harrowing journey that saw her become the powerful crime boss shown inThe Penguinepisode 6’s ending. However, it is these elements that saw Turtorro reject a return inThe Penguin,showing an inherent misunderstanding of the DC Universe.
John Turturro’s Comments About The Penguin’s Violence Toward Women Explained
Turturro Has His Reasons For Not Coming Back As Carmine Falcone
When addressing hisreasons for not returning inThe Penguin, Turturro outlined other aspects than the initially-reported scheduling conflicts that saw Mark Strong cast in the role. While it remains true that Turturro had other commitments that meant he could not feasibly return for the DC TV show, the actor has recently spoken toVarietyabout other elements ofThe Penguin’s story. When quizzed on the recasting of Carmine,Turturro had this to say:“I did what I wanted to with the role. In the show, there was a lot of violence towards women, and that’s not my thing.”
As evident by Turturro’s comments, the actor simply felt that there was little left for him to explore in the role beyond what was already shown inThe Batman. This leads to the actor’s next point, that he feltThe Penguinincluded too much violence against women. Of course, Turturro has the right to turn down any role for whatever reason. That said, it may be the case that these comments from Turturro show a misunderstanding towards one of the key elements ofThe Penguin,The Batman,and, by extension, this entire section of the DC Universe.
The Batman Already Established Carmine Falcone As Violent Toward Women
The primary reason behind this aforementioned misunderstanding is thatThe Batmanalready highlighted Carmine Falcone as a very violent man, specifically towards women. Turturro does comment that a lot of Carmine’s violence towards female characters happens off-screen, butThe Penguinis no different. In fact,The Penguinis arguably more tame regarding explicit showcases of violence committed by Carmine. InThe Batman, Falcone is shown attempting to strangle Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman to death before Batman saves her.
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Thus far inThe Penguin, Carmine’s violent tendencies have only been implied. It is revealed that Carmine killed seven women before the events ofThe Batman, including his wife. However, none of these murders are shown, like Carmine’s attempt to kill Catwoman in the movie. Therefore, Turturro’s comments begin to somewhat lose credence. This links to showrunner Lauren LeFranc’s comments about Turturro’s comments, with the former reinforcing thatThe Batmanalready showed how violent Carmine can be towards women viaThe Wrap:
“Carmine in the movie killed Selina Kyle’s mother and then does try to actively kill Selina, and also kills Annika – Selina’s friend. I think it’s been established, and Matt [Reeves] and I are in agreement on this, that Carmine’s a very violent man and has a violent streak against women.”
As LeFranc points out, one of the core components of Carmine’s character in bothThe BatmanandThe Penguinis his violence. In both projects, Carmine’s crimes against women are implied.The only difference is thatThe Batmanactively shows Carmine attempting to carry out another murder, something thatThe Penguinhas left absentas of episode 6’s ending. For these reasons, it seems that Turturro’s comments about not returning forThe Penguinare misguided, and miss the point of the show’s overall themes.
The Penguin Doesn’t Glorify The Violence It Portrays
Carmine’s Actions Are Never Condoned
The core component ofThe Penguin,and the DC Universe as a whole, that Turturro’s perspective misunderstands is that the violence against women is never glorified. Carmine Falcone is clearly outlined as one of thebiggest villains inThe Batman’s universe, and one of the most reprehensible characters across both projects. There has always been a clear difference inThe BatmanandThe Penguinbetween simply portraying violence and glorifying it. In both projects, the level of violence that Carmine - or anyone else - possesses has been condemned.
Turturro insisting that this aspect of the show is not for him implies the glorification of such moments is part ofThePenguinwhen the opposite could not be more true…
This is evident in the scene during which Carmine attempts to kill Catwoman. The latter then tries to kill the former, with Batman stopping her as if she goes through with it, she will be just as bad as Carmine is.The Penguinis similar, with the show presenting Sofia as a sympathetic antagonist. Sofia’s story makes it clear that Carmine’s needless violence against women was undeniably wrong; Turturro insisting that this aspect of the show is not for him implies the glorification of such moments is part ofThePenguinwhenthe opposite could not be more true.
Sofia Falcone’s Story Includes Violence But Is About Empowerment
Sofia’s VIolence Is Evident, But It Is In The Name Of Female Empowerment
As alluded to, it is the story of Sofia Falcone that proves above all else thatThe Penguindoes not gratify violence. Yes, Sofia Falcone’s story has included a lot of violence and death, even sometimes caused by her own hands. However, the show never crosses that line of making these acts seem earned or understandable, but simply a product of Sofia’s incredibly difficult life. Sofia and Oz are equally deplorable people, yet both have sympathetic aspects.The former’s sympathetic elements stem from outright opposing Carmine’s violence against women, leading to her own empowermentin spite of his crimes.
Victor killing Squid in The Penguin episode 6 and his traumatized, disgusted reaction to the act also shows how violence is not something to be proud of.
It was Sofia’s consideration of outing Carmine’s crimes against women to a reporter that set her down her path. This was driven by the reveal that Carmine killed her mother, resulting in Sofia being sent to Arkham as another victim of her father’s evil. Sofia’s journey after this point has been about reclaiming - or, more accurately, forging - her own identity, and erasing Carmine Falcone’s legacy for good. This does not sound like a story that glorifies Carmine’s actions, proving that Turturro’s reasons for not reprising his role inThe Penguinare inherently misguided.
The Penguin
Cast
Created by Lauren LeFranc, The Penguin is a crime-drama spin-off television series of 2022’s film The Batman. Set shortly after the events of The Batman, Oz Cobb, A.K.A. the Penguin, begins his rise in the underworld of Gotham City as he contends with the daughter of his late boss, Carmine Falcone, for control of the crime family’s empire.
