In the 2022 film The Batman, John Turturro played the role of crime boss Carmine Falcone. However, in the upcoming series The Penguin, which takes place in the same fictional universe as The Batman, Mark Strong will be playing the character. As fans have been speculating on why the change was made, series creator Lauren LeFranc has decided to address the issue.
Lauren LeFranc on why Mark Strong plays Carmine Falcone in The Penguin
LeFranc revealed in a recent interview that John Turturro was “unavailable” to reprise his role as Carmine Falcone due to “scheduling conflicts,” which led to the character being recast with Mark Strong. In The Batman, Falcone is revealed to be Selina Kyle’s (Zoë Kravitz) biological father. He is the main target of the movie’s primary antagonist, the Riddler, and is eventually assassinated by him. However, Falcone will reportedly appear in flashback sequences in The Penguin, the main story of which takes place a week after the events of The Batman.
“Well, practically, John was just unavailable to us,” LeFranc explained during an interview with IGN. “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, I’m so used to John Turturro,’ and obviously John’s a great actor, 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,” she added.
Strong has portrayed numerous movie villains throughout his career, several of which have been in comic book movie adaptations such as Frank D’Amico in Kick-Ass (2010), Sinestro in Green Lantern (2011), and Dr. Thaddeus Sivana in Shazam! (2019). The Penguin also stars Colin Farrell as Oswald “Oz” Cobb / Penguin and Cristin Milioti as Sofia Falcone / The Hangman, who is another daughter of Falcone.
