Harley Quinn actor Margot Robbie reveals the Penguin was the original villain in Birds of Prey, until The Batman director Matt Reeves got involved: "'I'm gonna use him in my thing'"

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The villain ended up being Ewan McGregor's Black Mask

Margot Robbie in Birds of Prey
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

Margot Robbie has revealed that the Penguin was initially set to be the main villain in Birds of Prey, before Matt Reeves decided to use him for The Batman.

"The first draft that Christina [Hodson] wrote of Birds of Prey, the villain was the Penguin," Robbie told Colin Farrell during an interview with Entertainment Weekly. The actor went on to explain to a shocked Farrell that it was ultimately Reeves who barred the film from including the Penguin. It's worth noting, however, that Farrell wasn't cast as Oz Cobblepot aka the Penguin until Birds of Prey had already entered post-production (and we're curious as to who Hodson and director Cathy Yan had in mind at the time).

The Penguin (voiced by Wayne Knight) also served as a minor antagonist in the adult animated series Harley Quinn. The two characters have yet to have a proper live-action, on-screen meet-up – and we still don't know if Robbie will reprise her role as Harley Quinn in the new DCU, though Robert Pattinson's Batman lives in a separate universe. We do know, however, that we'll find out some day if Robbie's Harley will return, with Gunn telling EW that it will be "revealed down the line."

Lauren Milici
Lauren Milici
Senior Entertainment Writer

Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ based in New York City. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.

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