Entertainment
The Actor We're So Glad Turned Down The Penguin Before Colin Farrell
By Becca Lewis
| Published
While we love to see Jonah Hill playing an idiot billionaire in Don’t Look Up, is he really who we would want to see as The Penguin? Luckily, we don’t have to find out, because Colin Farrell picked up that flag and ran with it to deliver a satisfyingly spineless performance in the DC Entertainment miniseries. The Penguin is a slimy, seedy addition to the Batman franchise, and although Jonah Hill is great at lots of things, Colin Farrell really shines as the ruthless wannabe mobster, Oz Cob.
Jonah Hill Was Nearly The Penguin
It’s not clear why Jonah Hill would pass on playing the iconic role of the Penguin in The Batman, but it could have been because he seemed more interested in playing the character of the Riddler. While the loss of Hill on the project was reported as a major setback for the DC comic adaptation from Matt Reeves, it might have been for the best that Colin Farrell got the job, because he is still killing it in the role. As for Jonah Hill’s choice of roles, it’s likely that the final sticking point in negotiations with the studio wasn’t about The Riddler vs. the Penguin, but rather about money.
If the salary requirements for Jonah Hill to play the Penguin were to blame for his not getting the part, he could be regretting that choice now, as The Penguin, a sequel miniseries to The Batman is currently a smash hit. The Penguin has won a 94 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes and had 5.3 million views on HBO across its streaming platform within the first four days of its release. Jonah Hill might be kicking himself for not boarding that train at the first stop, even though fans of the series are smitten with Colin Farrell in the role.
The Penguin Miniseries
The Batman role that Jonah Hill turned down sparked the spinoff miniseries The Penguin, giving the comic book villain a backstory, and a chance to construct the character’s past. Oz Cobb, the wannabe gangster that becomes The Penguin, struggles to gain favor with his family, to survive the tumultuous violence of the crime family he works for, and to climb the gang’s ladder. He’s manipulative, smart, and scheming, and will stop at nothing to get what he wants, which is of course, to please his mother.
Colin Farrell Shines As Oz Cobb
Although Jonah Hill is a great villain, the comic book villain status of the Penguin is a whole other level of evil that he just might not be able to achieve. Colin Farrell transforms himself for the role into a sociopathic, remorseless, underdog, who lurks within the circle of the Falcone family, constructing an escape from his job as a driver, and weaving a revenge-fueled rise to power. Perhaps for Jonah Hill, the Riddler, rather than the Penguin would have been a better choice.
Whatever the reason was that Jonah Hill ultimately passed on the role of the Penguin in the 2022 film The Batman, audiences are thrilled with Colin Farrell in the role. The subsequent miniseries featuring the Penguin as the main character is a testament to the love fans have for the casting choice. Hopefully, Hill isn’t too regretful of his decision to pass, because he gave fans the Penguin character we always wanted.
Entertainment
BookCon 2026: Authors Rachel Reid, Stephanie Archer talk hockey romance and how it could change the sport for the better
With the fervor of Heated Rivalry, there’s a fierce desire among book readers for even more hockey. On Sunday, April 19, at BookCon, the “You Had Me at Hockey: A Look at One of Sports Romance’s Hottest Genres”, authors Rachel Reid (Heated Rivalry, Game Changer), Emily Rath (Pucking Around), Ngozi Ukazu (Check Please), Stephanie Archer (The Wild Card), and Kate Cochrane (Wake Up, Nat & Darcy) were joined by moderator and fellow author Bal Khabra (Collide) to discuss the rise and continued success of hockey romance.
Khabra kicked off the panel, asking just how hockey became so popular. Ukazu joked that it was as if the genre “escaped containment,” like when the Omegaverse went mainstream, while Reid described the mystery around hockey, saying, “what [the players] are doing seems impossible.” Archer also added that the sport itself is exceptionally hard on the body, and the celebrity around players, especially in Canada, is fun to play with.
But there’s more to the genre’s success than the tropes. “It has to be said,” Rath argued, “that the cornerstone of why this is so popular in publishing is racism.” She went on to say that straight, white women’s voices dominated the romance genre for so long, pointing out that hockey is also the whitest sport. Among major league sports, the NHL is the most predominantly white. In 2022, ESPN reported that 83.6% of league players and staff were white, compared to the NFL, where 25-27% of players are white, or the NBA, where white players make up 17.5% of the league.
Mashable Top Stories
Zooming into the genre, the authors also spoke about the writing process. They dove into the deeper aspects of their work, even the smut. Rath said, “I think the least sexy thing you can ever do is write a sex scene.” A similar sentiment came up during Reid’s Saturday panel, where she described using the sex scenes to further the emotional arc. When readers ask authors if they can skip the spice, Archer says of her own books, “No, you can’t skip the sex scenes. You’re missing so much character development if you don’t go on the journey with them.”
The panel turned to the future, too. Many of the authors write BIPOC and queer representation into their novels, in a genre that often centers on whiteness and homophobia. “We’re writing the world as we want it to be,” Rath said.
Reid has found that there is progress toward a future that these authors and their readers want to see, saying that the NHL is interested in working with them. “People on the inside, they really want to work toward change and want to make this happen.”
With the hockey fandom at an all-time high, there’s a whole team behind these authors ready to drive change.
Entertainment
Save on gas (and everything else) with a $15 BJ’s membership
TL;DR: Score a one-year BJ’s membership for $15 (reg. $60) and save up to 20¢/gal. on gas through April 30 — just in time for spring shopping and road trips.
Credit: BJ’s Wholesale Club
The warmer weather tends to sneak up fast, and so do those grocery bills and gas receipts. A one-year membership to BJ’s Wholesale Club is one of those simple upgrades that can make everyday shopping feel a little more manageable.
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Mashable Deals
Let’s start with the obvious, though. Gas prices. Members already get everyday savings at BJ’s Gas, but during this promo window, you’ll get an extra 15¢ off per gallon stacked on top of the usual 5¢ discount — bringing your total to 20¢ off per gallon through April 30.
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Mashable Trend Report
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StackSocial prices subject to change.
Entertainment
This $43 bundle quietly upgrades your entire PC experience
TL;DR: This rare Microsoft bundle deal gives you a lifetime license to Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows and Windows 11 Pro for only $42.97 (reg. $418.99) through May 17.
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Save $376.02
Looking for an affordable way to make your old PC feel new again? If you don’t have the funds to buy a brand new computer, don’t worry. The Ultimate Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows lifetime license and Windows 11 Pro Bundle is the next best thing, offering your computer a total upgrade for only $42.97 through May 17.
Don’t count out your dusty old PC. This Microsoft bundle is here to give it a total facelift for less than $50. It kicks off with a lifetime license to some of the brand’s most popular tools — Microsoft Office, which you’ll pay for once and enjoy without any subscription fees.
Mashable Deals
You’ll get permanent access to a suite of eight helpful apps with Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows. It includes staples that have been around for decades, like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. You’ll also get newer favorites like Teams, OneNote, Access, and Publisher.
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Mashable Deals
Show your PC some love with the Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows and Windows 11 Pro bundle for only $42.97 (reg. $418.99) now until May 17.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
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