“I did a deep dive into the comics”: Matt Reeves Reveals His Process That Led to a Wildly Different Version of Sofia Falcone in The Penguin

DC Studios’ The Penguin is a crime drama television series based on the DC Comics character of the same name. Actor Colin Farrell, who played the Penguin in Matt Reeves’ The Batman in 2022, reprised his character to explore the character’s rise to power in Gotham City’s criminal underworld. The show stars Cristin Milioti, Clancy Brown, Carmen Ejogo, and more.

Reportedly, Reeves had suggested to the studio executives that the sequel movie could explore the Penguin’s character, but the executives decided to give the character its spin-off series. However, Reeves overlooked the entire process, including the writing and hiring of the creative team. The crime drama picks up from where The Batman left off, and the filmmaker recently shared his process of developing the character for the show. 

Matt Reeves explains The Penguin‘s version of Sofia Falcone compared to the DC Comics

In a recent interview with CBR, filmmaker Matt Reeves, who has overlooked the writing for HBO’s The Penguin and serves as the executive producer on the show, was asked about their different take on Sofia Falcone’s character. He explained,

When we were doing The Batman, I did a deep dive into the comics, and you know, kind of trying to find those things that resonate with you, and then you kind of take something, and then you make it your own. Everything’s about a reinterpretation. And when Lauren LeFranc was going off and trying to dig into the story that we are all trying to tell, she found in Batman: The Long Halloween the idea of digging into the character Sofia. I think she wanted to make it very personal. 

Reeves further explained that according to him, there was something the showrunner wanted to say about being a woman in this world, and then there was a connection. He recalled that when he and other executive producer Dylan Clark were hearing LeFranc narrate her pitch, she explained her idea by stating that there was a history that Sofia Falcone had with Oz that they didn’t know about.

Upon Reeves and Clark’s asking about the history between the two characters, the showrunner pointed out that they were in a way both marginalized in the world. The two characters are trying to find a way to get back to the world, and there is some unfinished business between them, but also that there is a way they are together.

The filmmaker mentioned during the interview one thing they were excited about:

For a moment, they’re kind of delicious partners—despite the fact that something terrible Oz has done at the beginning if she ever knew that, would destroy them. Wouldn’t it be great to go down that path? That was what really captivated us about it.

Clark chimed in to add that Lauren LeFranc very brilliantly created empathy around Sofia Falcone’s family dynamics. He described Sofia Falcone’s character as very sophisticated, adding that the series goes on to explore how behavioral manipulations and the complexities of psychologies allow the audience to feel for her. 

Dylan Clark on why Cristin Milioti was picked to play Sofia Falcone-Gigante

Actress Cristin Milioti, who is known for her work on How I Met Your Mother, has been gaining praise for portraying Sofia Falcone on the show. During the interview, Clark was asked how they decided that Milioti would be apt for the role. He added,

Well, she grew up as a gangster’s daughter. So we told her, ‘Be yourself. You don’t have to do any acting. Cristin being a New York City girl who was raised in New Jersey—talked about family dinners and cousins and people on the block that may or may not have been affiliated with the gangster criminal underworld. She just had an ability to kind of channel that feeling, that vibe.

Clark further explained that the actress possessed a dialect that just hit them right between the eyes. He recalled that when she acted opposite Colin Farrell, they understood that she understood the world. In her interview with Batman News, the actress revealed that during her initial meeting with Matt Reeves and Lauren Falcone, she wanted to be prepared, so she did her research.

But she added that the two of them told her that they’d be taking a different approach for the character compared to the comics. So, she just focused on what LeFranc wrote. The audience and the critics have appreciated her for her work on the show. 

The Penguin is streaming on HBO MAX.