Latest news with #TheBatman
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
How ‘The Penguin' transformed real NYC locations into Gotham's criminal underworld (see the exclusive concept art)
Who knew The Penguin owes a debt of gratitude to Popeye Doyle? As production designer Kalina Ivanov tells Gold Derby, Matt Reeves, the director of 2022's The Batman and an executive producer on The Penguin, informed her that the "inspiration" for his vision of Gotham City was The French Connection, William Friedkin's 1971 neo-noir crime thriller starring Gene Hackman as the unorthodox cop Doyle, which won five Oscars, including Best Picture. "That is something I held very dear in my heart," Ivanov says, "because I really wanted to make a new version of The French Connection." See exclusive sketches, concept art, and set photos from The Penguin in our gallery above. More from GoldDerby Janelle James on Ava's challenging year on 'Abbot Elementary': 'They kind of threw everything at me this season' 'Death Becomes Her' costume designer Paul Tazewell on creating show's spectacular outfits: 'Theater-making is about the impossible' (exclusive images) Jamie Lee Curtis eyes historic back-to-back Emmy win as Comedy Guest Actress race heats up Colin Farrell reprises his villainous role of Oswald "Oz" Cobb/the Penguin in the HBO limited series, after having a supporting role in The Batman. Following the events of that motion picture, The Penguin chronicles the character's rise to power in Gotham's criminal underworld, which was filmed in and around New York City. "It's rare to meet a producer and actor that will actually come and talk to you and have a real design meeting," Ivanov says about Farrell. "I showed him all the designs, and particularly his apartment, and he was instrumental in the design of the whole show." Courtesy of Kalina Ivanov/HBO Max While Lauren LeFranc was the showrunner, producer, and writer of the TV spin-off, Reeves was still "involved," Ivanov explains. "We had some creative meetings, and occasionally, we would send him materials, and he was very aware of everything we were doing. He was staying behind the scenes, but he was communicative with Lauren in the script area." LeFranc is "one of the nicest people on the planet," claims the Emmy-winning production designer for Grey Gardens (2009). "I got to know her through this experience, and I can say that she is perhaps the best showrunner I've ever had. That doesn't come lightly, because I've had some good ones, but she's very communicative and very thoughtful. I just loved working with her." Growing up in Bulgaria, Ivanov was a "theater kid" who wanted to be an actress, until she realized "that was a disaster," so she set her sights on designing. "I suspect that was because my uncle was an architect," she reveals. "I studied theater, and then we escaped from Bulgaria. I ended up at NYU as an undergraduate in a graduate program, if you can imagine that. But it was a very, very good education." Courtesy of Kalina Ivanov/HBO Max One of Ivanov's favorite locations in The Penguin is the Falcone mansion, which is on Long Island. "It's one of The Great Gatsby mansions, but it wasn't on the Sound, it was more in inland," she recalls. "The owners were incredibly generous with us. They made time for us to be able to film. They did not bat an eye when we offered to enhance the exterior with our fountain. As a matter of fact, they thought it was a good idea to have a fountain!" For the interior of the mansion, she "enhanced it quite substantially" after being influenced by an Italian villa on Lake Como. "What I liked about that villa was the darker colors, and so I thought it would be good to have a lot of black, a lot of gold, but sparingly, not overwhelmingly," she details. "The rest of it was done in Venetian plaster. We had a lot of textures, and the amazing pre-Renaissance murals were everywhere." The trolley depot set was built inside Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx, which Ivanov states is the "biggest one in New York, and for 15 years nobody could shoot there." She continues on, "I loved the lobby that existed, and I wanted it to be a working man's cathedral. Going with Matt's theme of The French Connection being always under subways and arches, I went with that idea of arches for the trolley depot. The columns that we put in mimicked the detail from the lobby, so the relationship between the location and the set was perfect." Courtesy of Kalina Ivanov/HBO Max She divulges, "The trolley cars were modern, so we retrofitted them and made them look like they've been there since 1957, because that's when we discovered the last trolley left the station. They were brought in, and the tunnel was built around the cars, in a sense." The Penguin's "journey" was important to Ivanov and LeFranc. As the artisan declares, "At the beginning, he lives on the third story of the abandoned hotel, and at the end he will graduate to the penthouse, to give him an arc of progression. The apartment at the beginning was a jeweler's repair shop, and I had done a little bit of research about that. And so the Penguin lived in a room that used to be the vault, basically." Ivanov designed the entire abandoned hotel "through visual effects," and planned to create the sets for it, but "our budget was not able to support that." Instead, the team found a real art deco building in downtown NYC with a floor that was under renovation, which she saw as a "completely blank slate." She remembers, "That worked well for us, because I was able to bring the columns, the floor, and the frescoes, which this time were the hounds of Zeus. We were able to create everything, from the chandeliers to every single piece of detail. In a way, it was a stage. But it was on the 30th floor of a real building." Courtesy of Kalina Ivanov/HBO Max Monroe's jazz club is one of Ivanov's favorite sets from The Penguin, as budget issues caused her to improvise on the fly. "We ended up with a location that had Hieronymus Bosch murals that were absolutely not appropriate for our movie," she recalls. "So, as I was wondering how I could handle that, a light bulb went off in my head, and I said, 'OK, we cover the murals.' And so we built in the columns, the booths themselves, the intricate work behind them, and the blue curtain, which hid the murals, and then we put our own paintings in front of that." The designer also "built this chandelier, and we put it up from the beginning, and then we dropped it in the end, and the scene is so good with the dropped chandelier." Ivanov adds, "It was so hard to come up with a solution, and yet I was able to find a solution and make and use the set that I had already planned on building." All episodes of The Penguin are streaming now on Max. The limited series is eligible at the 2025 Emmys, and Ivanov says a nomination "would mean the world to me." SIGN UP for Gold Derby's free newsletter with latest predictions Launch Gallery: 'The Penguin' exclusive sketches, concept art, and set photos from production designer Kalina Ivanov Best of GoldDerby 'Étoile' creators on writing a show for 'genius' Luke Kirby How 'The Handmaid's Tale' series finale sets up 'The Testaments' TV Visual Effects supervisor roundtable: 'Black Mirror,' 'The Boys,' 'The Wheel of Time' Click here to read the full article.
Forbes
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Everything Released In The Gap Between ‘Stranger Things' Seasons 4 And 5
Stranger Things Stranger Things season 5 will finally arrive later this year, albeit halfway through 2025 now, we still don't have an exact date. We have now waited over three years between seasons, even as Netflix said that the series was a 'priority' for them following previous strikes. Other big shows with huge waits such as Squid Game and Wednesday, will both be out before it will. Stranger Things season 4 was released on May 27 of 2022. I saw a post that said that the entire series of The Bear has aired between now and then (and season 4 is coming in a month). That got me thinking about what else has happened in the entertainment industry between seasons 4 and 5 in this absurdly long streaming season gap era. Shows: Wednesday, House of the Dragon (both seasons), The Last of Us (both seasons), The Penguin, Shogun, The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power (both seasons), The Bear (all seasons) House of the Dragon Movies: Top Gun Maverick, The Batman, Avatar: The Way of Water, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Jurassic World: Dominion, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and 3, Barbenheimer The Batman Games: Elden Ring, Horizon Forbidden West, God of War Ragnarök, Tears of the Kingdom, Baldur's Gate 3, Sifu, Immortality, Starfield, Final Fantasy XVI, Hogwarts Legacy Horizon Forbidden West Nine MCU Movies: Thor: Love and Thunder, Black Panther, Wakanda Forever, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Marvels, Deadpool and Wolverine, Captain America Brave New World, Thunderbolts and imminently, The Fantastic Four. Nine MCU Shows: Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk, Secret Invasion, Loki (season 2), What If…? (season 2), Echo, Agatha All Along, Daredevil: Born Again, Ironheart (imminent) She Hulk Four DCEU Movies: Black Adam, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash and Blue Beetle, and the transfer to the DCU and James Gunn with Superman Eight Star Wars Shows: Andor (seasons 1 and 2), The Mandalorian (season 2), The Book of Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka, Tales of the Jedi (season 2), The Acolyte, Skeleton Crew (no Star Wars movies, however, with Disney abandoning those for years). You get the idea. We are going to be pushing three and a half years between Stranger Things seasons, which allegedly come out in 2025, but with no confirmed date yet, it might get pushed, and even if not, it may be broken into parts where one of those potentially airing in 2026. At this point, it will almost be a relief to see it end, and Netflix had better issue an hour-long 'previously on' recap video. Follow me on Twitter, YouTube, Bluesky and Instagram. Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
Newsweek
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
'The Penguin' Showrunner Reveals More 'Batman' Spinoffs Could Be Coming
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Entertainment gossip and news from Newsweek's network of contributors Writer and director Matt Reeves created a fascinating version of the Caped Crusader with 'The Batman' in 2022. The realistic and gritty aesthetic, combined with excellent performances from its entire cast, has been met with critical acclaim and even Academy Award nominations. More Entertainment: 'Black Panther' Game Canceled and Studio Shockingly Shut Down by EA This sentiment continued with the HBO Max spin-off series 'The Penguin' starring Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti. Not only was it widely popular with fans, but it also garnered awards for both its leads. Needless to say, fans are clamoring for more of Reeves 'The Batman' universe. And according to 'The Penguin's showrunner, they will likely get it. Collin Farrell took home the Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe for his role in The Penguin. The star was full of praise for actors who have previously played Batman villains. Collin Farrell took home the Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe for his role in The Penguin. The star was full of praise for actors who have previously played Batman villains. HBO During an appearance on Deadline's Crew Call, 'The Penguin' executive producer and showrunner Lauren LeFranc revealed that more spinoffs based on Matt Reeves' 'The Batman' universe could be on the way, saying that they were in the "early stages." 'The Penguin' showrunner Lauren LeFranc says that other 'THE BATMAN' spin-offs are in the early stages of development. (Source: Deadline) — DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) May 28, 2025 Additionally, LeFranc spoke to what could potentially be in Season 2 despite it being intended as a limited series. "Beyond Colin (Farrell), it depends on whether there's a story that we can make richer than what we've already done," LeFranc said. "I'm in the process of exploring what that would be, if there will be more." More Entertainment: Official 'Superman' Trailer is Bursting With First Looks at Heroes and Villains While the news about spinoffs is certainly exciting, fans are still waiting for an update on 'The Batman: Part II.' The first film garnered $772.3 million in the box office while also earning Oscar nominations for Best Sound, Best Visual Effects, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling. Despite this amount of success, there have been very few official updates on 'The Batman: Part II,' including what the actual title may be. At this point, the only thing known about the film is that Robert Pattinson will reprise the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman as well as the return of Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner Gordon, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, and Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot AKA The Penguin. More Entertainment: Michael B. Jordan's 'Sinners' Finally Has a Streaming Date—For a Fee 'Rick and Morty' Season 8 is Now Available to Watch—Here's How to Stream 'A Minecraft Movie' Hits HBO Max for Free Streaming in June: What to Know Exclusive: 'TMNT' Spinoff Series 'Casey Jones' Set for Release This Fall For more DC Comics and television news, head on over to Newsweek Entertainment.
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Motorcycle stuntwoman on being Scarlett Johansson's double, Hollywood, and having no fear
When Sarah Lezito began messing around with motorbikes at 13 she never dreamed that one day she would become the stunt double of some of Hollywood's biggest stars. Advertisement The French winemaker's daughter has stood in for Scarlett Johansson on Avengers 2 and Black Widow, and appeared in a dozen films including The Batman. The 32-year-old is one of a rare breed of motorcycle stuntwomen, with a massive social media following that helped take her from the vineyards of France's Champagne region to Hollywood. Today, she is on her own personal training track amid vineyards near Épernay, the Champagne capital in northeast France. Barely astride her Kawasaki, she is off down the track performing stunts with disconcerting dexterity, her long brown hair trailing out of her helmet in the wind. Motorcycle stunt rider Sarah Lezito stands on her Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R on her private track near Epernay, in eastern France. Photo: AFP 'This is kind of my temple,' she says after performing a series of tricks including standing with both feet on top of her 200kg (440lb) machine and flipping herself onto the handlebars.
Business Recorder
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Business Recorder
‘One in a billion': French stuntwoman putting fizz into Hollywood
EPERNAY: When Sarah Lezito began messing around with motorbikes at 13 she never dreamed that one day she would become the stunt double of some of Hollywood's biggest stars. The French winemaker's daughter has stood in for Scarlett Johansson – twice – on 'Avengers 2' and 'Black Widow' and appeared in a dozen films including 'The Batman'. The 32-year-old is one of a very rare breed of motorcycle stuntwomen, with a massive social media following that helped bring her from the vineyards of France's Champagne region to Hollywood. AFP caught up with her on her own personal training track amid the otherwise tranquil vineyards near Epernay, the Champagne capital in northeast France. Barely astride her red chrome Kawasaki, she was off down the track performing stunts with disconcerting dexterity, her long brown hair trailing out of her helmet in the wind. 'This is kind of my temple,' she said after performing a series of gravity-defying tricks including standing with both feet on top of her 200-kilo (440-pound) machine and then flipping herself onto the handlebars. 'People think I'm working, but it mostly allows me to release all the pressure,' said Lezito, whose lucky charm – a plastic beaded bracelet – is wrapped around the throttle of her bike. 'Doing wheelies in a field' The woman now popularly known as the 'world stunt champion' (although there is no recognised world championship) began her acrobatics career young on the family holding near Epernay. 'I fell into stunts by watching videos,' she told AFP. 'No one in my family was in the motor sports world. My father only had an agricultural quad, not at all made for sports, but I started trying to do wheelies with it in a field.' Then she began posting her stunt videos on YouTube. But she seemed destined to follow her family into wine and viticulture until she posted a video of a medley of tricks one day in March 2013 called 'One out of Billion Girls'. 'It was thanks to this video that they noticed me,' she said. The 'they' being the team from the Hollywood blockbuster 'Avengers 2'. A few months later, she abandoned her winemaking studies to fly to South Korea to perform Johansson's stunts in the movie. Dior shows Maria Grazia Chiuri's cruise collection in Rome Because she 'adapted quickly' to stunt work, Lezito decided to go professional, appearing in several major movies, including 'Inferno', 'Millennium' and 'The Batman' with Zoe Kravitz. 'I met all the actresses I've doubled for,' she said. 30 million followers She has had her moments on some of the movies, although she insists she has never felt fear on those she does 'at home' for social media. 'I had to ride through flames for 'Bad Girl', a film which was never released. On paper, it was very simple, but I didn't have a helmet,' she recalled. And in the summer of 2023 while filming David Fincher's 'The Killer' in Paris, starring Michael Fassbender, Lezito had a severe fall. 'I flew off the motorcycle, I wasn't going very fast but fast enough to land on my head and the helmet cracked.' She ended up in the emergency room with a head injury. It 'made her think', she told AFP, and she 'decided to take a break' and put her Hollywood career on hold. Lezito now devotes herself to her social media channels, posting videos of her stunts to her more than 30 million followers – including 9.5 million on Instagram, some two million more than MotoGP star Marc Marquez. Her garage doubles as a studio, with her YouTube trophies and gifts from her fans displayed on the walls. But it is also where she gets her hands dirty repairing her fleet of roughly 10 motorcycles. 'As long as I enjoy sitting on the motorcycle, I'll keep doing this,' she said.
