John Turturro, who played gangster Carmine Falcone in the 2022 film The Batman, has shared why he chose not to reprise the role in the new TV spin-off The Penguin.
The actor explained that in addition to being busy with other projects, the portrayal of violence towards women in the series was ‘not his thing’.
When the film about the masked DC Comics superhero came out two years ago, Carmine was revealed to be a cold-blooded killer, as well as an informant who helped the police incarcerate a rival mob boss.
In The Penguin – which stars Colin Farrell as Carmine’s former crony Oz Cobb, and has been hailed by many fans as the best show of 2024 so far – flashback scenes show a younger version of the Falcone patriarch, but this time he’s depicted by Mark Strong.
It was previously claimed John, 67, didn’t return because of scheduling conflicts, with showrunner Lauren LeFranc saying that he ‘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,’ she told IGN.
However, in an interview, John disclosed that the depiction of violence against women in the drama was also behind his reason not to come back.
‘I did what I wanted to with the role,’ he told Variety. ‘In the show, there was a lot of violence towards women, and that’s not my thing.’
The actor pointed out that in The Batman, a lot of the violence that’s inherent in Carmine’s persona ‘happens off-screen’, adding: ‘It’s scarier that way.’
As for the fact that his decision not to star in The Penguin was also down to scheduling conflicts, the Severance actor also said: ‘You can’t do everything you want to.’
In response to John’s remarks, The Penguin showrunner Lauren said that she ‘completely’ respected his reasons for not reprising the role.
‘I completely respect an actor who doesn’t want to take on a role for whatever their personal reasons,’ she told TheWrap.
‘I only want people to join our show who are excited and want to further the story we’re trying to tell. I think Mark Strong did a really fantastic job. He made the character his own and also really honoured what John Turturro did.’
Lauren added: ‘To my knowledge it was due to scheduling conflicts.’
After watching Mark, 61, take over the character in The Batman, several fans compared the performance to his predecessor.
One X user called @wyattyhalpert tweeted: ‘Mark Strong is good as Falcone but it’s such a shame Turturro couldn’t be in The Penguin. He made this character memorable and genuinely mesmerising in a movie with The Riddler, Penguin etc.’
Another fan called @johnlees927 wrote: ‘I’m enjoying episode 4 of #ThePenguin, and Mark Strong makes a good Carmine Falcone, but I can’t stop thinking about how thrilling it would have been to see John Turturro reprising the role here.’
‘Not going to lie. Mark Strong did such an amazing job channeling John Turturro in his portrayal of Carmine Falcone,’ @literaryparadox added.
‘I was in doubt at first, but as the 4th episode went on, I have to say, I was proven wrong. The transition between Tuturo and Strong felt so natural.’
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The Penguin is available to watch on Sky Atlantic and NOW, with new episodes released on Mondays.
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