James Gunn Kills Penguin Rumor Regarding Batman Rights Issue

Just before announcing he'll be directing Superman: Legacy, DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn cleared up a rumor regarding the rights to Batman's villain, the Penguin.

A Twitter account called "The Art of the Batman" tweeted a CBR article that says Robert Pattinson won't be able to appear in the upcoming The Penguin series as Batman, but he could appear as Bruce Wayne or The Drifter - his civilian disguise. This was attributed to a rights issue between "Fox, Disney and a trio of mergers". Gunn responded to this tweet and shut down the rumor by simply stating, "That's not true."

When another user asked if he was referring to Pattinson's appearance or if the rights issue was wrong, Gunn clarified that the rights issue was the wrong part.

Set in the world of 2022's The Batman, the HBO Max series will focus on Oswald Cobblepot. The Penguin will be based on DC characters created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. It is written by Lauren LeFranc, who is also the showrunner. The first two episodes will be directed by Craig Zobel.