Colin Farrell as Penguin? Andy Serkis as Alfred? The Batman cast poised to grow

The Batman‘s lineup of heroes and allies is filling out. Just a few weeks afterZoe Kravitzlanded the role of Catwoman and Paul Dano agreed to slip on Riddler’s tights, news comes that Matthew Reeves’The Batmanmight enlist Colin Farrell and Andy Serkis to play The Penguin and Batman’s trusty butler, Alfred, respectively.

Neither deal has been finalized, according toThe WrapandDeadline,which broke the stories, although negotiations are believed to be in their final stages. If the deals pan out, Serkis and Farrell will joinTwilightandThe LighthousestarRobert Pattinson, who’ll be appearing as the Caped Crusader himself in the film.

Previously, actor Jonah Hill was said to be in talks to play Penguin or Riddler, but those negotiations ultimately fell through. If Farrell takes over as Penguin, then Reeves is clearly taking the character in a very different direction than originally planned. Meanwhile, Serkis is mainly associated with Marvel projects: he recently appeared as a villain inBlack Pantherand will step behind the camera todirectVenom 2for Sony, which is currently building out its ownSpider-Man-focused cinematic universe.

As die-hard fans might remember, Farrell actually has a supervillain past, too. In 2003, Farrell played Bullseye in Fox’s pre-MCUDaredevil, in which he starred opposite future and former Batman Ben Affleck.

Batman was last seen in Zack Snyder’sJustice League, following an earlier appearance inBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justiceand a brief cameo inSuicide Squad. While Affleck, who played Bruce Wayne in those movies, was originally set to star in and directThe Batman,he decided not to returnafter he had trouble cracking the script.

The Batman will not be an origin story, although it’s also not expected to have any ties to Warner Bros.’struggling DC Extended Universe, which will include upcoming featuresWonder Woman 1984,The Suicide Squad,andBirds of Prey. DReeves describesThe Batmanas a grounded, “noir-driven” take on the superhero that will play up Bruce Wayne’s detective skills, although he’ll clearly also have plenty of villains to fight.The Batmanwill hit theaters on August 07, 2025.