Why DC Recast Carmine Falcone In The Penguin

DC has recast the secret main villain of The Batman two years after the movie was released for The Penguin. There are many moving parts right now as the new DC Studios led by James Gunn and Peter Safran starts to build the next decade of stories. Those will be mostly focused on the duo’s plans for the new DC Universe, which replaces the old DCEU and begins this December with the animated Creature Commandos. However, director Matt Reeves’ The Batman universe will continue to exist, becoming part of DC’s Elseworlds projects outside the DCU’s continuity.

2022’s The Batman has quickly become one of the Dark Knight’s best movies. It did a phenomenal job of making Gotham City as dangerous and dark as it should be, populating it with many characters from Batman’s rich comic book history. The Batman‘s cast included some heavy hitters, such as Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobb, aka the Penguin, who is the star of the first spinoff set in Reeves’ Batman world, The Penguin. The HBO series has recast The Batman‘s overarching villain, and the reason for that is quite simple.

Mark Strong Replaced John Turturro As Carmine Falcone

The Actor Is No Stranger To DC Movies

Carmine Falcone will be played by Mark Strong in The Penguin, who replaces The Batman‘s John Turturro. While Paul Dano’s Riddler is the active threat that Pattinson’s Dark Knight searches for throughout The Batman, the DC movie’s true mystery lies with Carmine Falcone. The mob boss controls crime in Gotham, with ties to many characters, including Selina Kyle, the Penguin, and, it turns out, even Bruce Wayne. The Batman revealed how Falcone had a past with the Waynes, going overboard after Thomas Wayne asked him to scare a journalist who threatened to expose Martha Wayne’s mental history records, killing him.

Playing Carmine Falcone in The Penguin marks the third live-action DC role for Strong. The actor has previously played two villains in very different DC franchises. Strong gave life to Sinestro in 2011’s Green Lantern movie opposite Ryan Reynolds’ Hal Jordan, later playing Doctor Thaddeus Sivana in the DCEU. Sivana was the main villain of Shazam! — later making a cameo appearance in Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Based on his experience with villain roles, even though the actor’s version of Sinestro only became a full-on villain at the end of the film, Strong should be as great as Carmine Falcone.

Why John Turturro Doesn’t Return As Carmine Falcone

The Answer To Falcone’s Recasting Is Simple

Speaking with IGN, The Penguin showrunner Lauren LeFranc explained why the DC series had to recast The Batman‘s Carmine Falcone. According to LeFranc, the decision was made simply out of scheduling issues, as John Turturro was not available for The Penguin. LeFranc said, “He had scheduling conflicts, and we couldn’t make it work, but honestly, I’m so thrilled that we brought Mark Strong on.” The showrunner did end up being happy about Strong coming in for the role, as LeFranc talked about the different gravitas that Strong brings to Falcone. Check out the full quote below:

“Well, practically, John was just unavailable to us. He had scheduling conflicts, and we couldn’t make it work, but honestly, I’m so thrilled that we brought Mark Strong on. I think he’s really good. Even though, maybe in the beginning when you first meet him, you might think, ‘Oh Well, for fans of The Batman, obviously I’m so used to John Turturro,’ but I feel like the gravitas that Mark brings, it’s different. It’s very specific, and I hope, by the end of that episode, you’re just thinking, ‘That’s Carmine Falcone,’ and you’re engaged in what Mark brings to it.”

LeFranc’s comments match the work Strong has done in his career, both at DC and outside it. In the comic book realm, it is no wonder that Strong played two major characters in the franchises he appeared in, with his version of Sinestro, an iconic DC Comics character, specifically showing the kind of gravitas that The Penguin‘s showrunner was talking about. Some of Strong’s most famous projects include Oliver Twist, Sherlock Holmes, The Imitation Game, and the Kingsman franchise. Throughout his career, Strong has always had the ability to shine, be it in more dramatic or comedic roles.

Mark Strong Plays Carmine Falcone In The Penguin’s 2012 Flashback

Ten Years Prior To The Events Of The Batman

Following a picture of him in the first episode, Mark Strong makes his debut as Carmine Falcone in episode 4, “Cent’Ann.” Almost this entire episode takes place ten years prior to the events of The Penguin, reliving Sofia Falcone’s backstory as she is sent to Arkham, framed by her father Carmine Falcone for the murders he committed.

Given that Strong is playing a younger version of Carmine Falcone, the change in characters isn’t as drastic as it could have been. These are two versions of Carmine at two different points in time and both Mark Strong and John Turturro bring the character to life. The Penguin‘s premiere episode hinted at what kind of relationship Sofia had with her father, as she teased that Oz going to him is what led to her being sent to Arkham Asylum, which episode 4 explores, painting Carmine Falcone in an even worse light than ever before.

In an interview with EW, Lauren LeFranc opened up even more about Mark Strong taking over as Carmine Falcone. “It became quickly about who has that sort of gravitas and ferociousness, that Mark Strong actually does have.” She also talked about how important it was to have Carmine in the show for episode 4, even if it wasn’t going to be Turturro. “We certainly weren’t going to not have Carmine in our story. We very specifically plotted Sofia’s arc to be interwoven with Carmine’s arc, as well.”

How Carmine Falcone’s Return Changes The Batman

He Was Always The Hangman

The revelation that Carmine Falcone is actually the Hangman, and not Sofia, paints his role in The Batman in an entirely new light. In the film, it is revealed that Carmine killed Selina’s mother as well as Annika, and he presumably killed more women the same way. The Penguin confirms that not only did he kill multiple women, he was a serial killer, dating back to at least a few decades prior to The Batman.

The Penguin shows just how powerful Carmine Falcone actually was, with essentially no way to stop him through the legal system. Many knew Falcone was murdering these women, but he had so many people on his payroll, it made him untouchable. Even though Carmine was revealed to be the rat in The Batman, it wasn’t until The Penguin episode 4 that it truly showed just how much power he had over the entirety of Gotham.

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