Acclaimed writer Tom King wants to show that Oswald Cobblepot is the most terrifying villain in the DC Universe in his upcoming series The Penguin.
King explained his goals during a recent chat with Popverse where he addressed Penguin’s sinister motivations and how he wanted to explore who he believes is “the worst person” to ever grace DC’s pantheon. “He is not empathetic, he’s the anti-hero of anti-heroes… he’s Walter White sitting over a friend while watching his girlfriend die so he can get better sales,” King explained. With this aspect in mind, the writer wants to explore Cobblepot on a smaller, more personal scale.
A New Take on The Penguin
“When I was on Batman, I did a lot of… ‘superhero’ Batman… with Gotham Girl and Bane and having these huge fights and since then I’ve always felt like I’ve wanted to just write street-level Batman, Gotham: Year One Batman,” King continued. The writer concludes by comparing The Penguin to classic “grounded and gritty” mobster stories, especially The Sopranos and Goodfellas. King has also stated that he was drawn to Oswald Cobblepot because of his less-than-popular standing amongst fans, noting that it’s only been since Matt Reeves‘ The Batman that audiences have started to take note of him.
The Penguin follows the titular villain as he ventures back to Gotham City after years of exile with one goal in mind: Reclaim what was once his. To do so, he’ll need to compete with a wealth of established villains but also his own bastard twins, Addison and Aiden Cobblepot, who took control of his underworld empire in his absence and are reluctant to relinquish their power.
The Penguin #1 by Tom King and Rafael de Latorre is now available in print as well as on digital platforms.
