Minnie Driver takes on an iconic Batman villain, with a twist.
She will voice Oswalda Cobblepot, a female interpretation of The Penguin, in Prime Video’s upcoming animated series “Batman: Caped Crusader.”
The news was revealed during Saturday’s San Diego Comic-Con panel for the highly anticipated show, which kicked off with a video message from executive producer Bruce Timm. He welcomed fans before kicking off the world premiere of the first episode, which reveals Driver’s Penguin for the first time.
Following the screening, executive producer Matt Reeves and the series’ voice cast, including Driver, Hamish Linklater as Batman and Jamie Chung as Harley Quinn, had a lively conversation about the show and their roles.
Driver acknowledged that some purists may disagree with a female Cobblepot, but she emphasizes that the character still conveys the essence of The Penguin. “When we are lucky enough to be invited on stage to inhabit these characters that already exist on the air, we just get up to meet them. And this was such a beautiful retelling of that villain. It was joyful. And I mean, she’s terrible.’
On Friday, Prime Video gave fans a sneak peek at the show by unveiling an exclusive new clip at the end of a panel on the streamer’s adult animated favorites, including “Invincible” and “The Legend of Vox Machina.”
Additional voice cast includes Diedrich Bader, Christina Ricci, Mckenna Grace, Eric Morgan Stuart, Michelle C. Bonilla, Krystal Joy Brown, John DiMaggio, Paul Scheer, Reid Scott, Tom Kenny, Jason Watkins, Gary Anthony Williams, Dan Donohue, David Krumholtz , Haley Joel Osment and Toby Stephens.
The series is a reinterpretation of the Batman mythology through the lens of executive producers Reeves, JJ Abrams and Bruce Timm. It comes from Warner Bros. Animation, Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions and Reeves’ 6th & Idaho. Ed Brubaker, James Tucker, Daniel Pipski, Rachel Rusch Rich and Sam Register also serve as executive producers.
“Batman: Caped Crusader” will be available to stream on Prime Video starting August 1.
