With The Penguin series having ended, the torch has now been passed back to Matt Reeves to continue the ‘Epic Crime Saga’ of Gotham City. Fans have been waiting for an update on the Batman during the events of The Penguin, and Reeves takes time to explain Bruce Wayne’s current mindset according to the timeline.
Talking to Digital Spy, Reeves confirms that Batman’s absence in the show was due to the Dark Knight going through an existential crisis after his clash with the Riddler. “This was a time of great turmoil in the city, it’s literally the week after what happened… Much of the city is in desperation, so police can’t get everywhere, there’s crime everywhere, it’s a very, very dangerous time,” Reeves says, “[Batman’s] out there trying to grapple with the aftermath of everything that happened, which to some degree he blames himself for.”
Reeves confirmed by the time the sequel starts, Bruce would find it “very hard to be Batman”.
From a practical standpoint, Reeves and Penguin showrunner Lauren LeFranc have confirmed that they couldn’t include Batman in the story without him overshadowing several of the main players including Oz and Sofia. While there were discussions of how they could get him to appear, they ultimately decided on just flashing the Batsignal at the very end of the first season.
The series has undoubtedly had a stellar run, but just like HBO’s Watchmen, a second season isn’t going to happen unless Reeves and LeFranc find a story worth telling with the character. If anything, a second season could follow after the events of The Batman Part II, but I would rather just shift the focus on another Gotham villain—maybe a side character introduced in Part II.
For now, The Batman Part II is aiming for a release sometime in 2026. Catch the complete Penguin now streaming on Max.
