SPOILER ALERT: This story contains major plot details from the HBO series finale of “The Penguin,” now streaming on Max.
It was a dark night on the set.
In a question-and-answer session following a screening of the “The Penguin” finale at the Saban Media Center on Nov. 10, Colin Farrell described the somber tone felt by the cast and crew during the final evening of filming for the Max limited series.
This was the night Farrell filmed the shocking series finale, which saw his character Oswald Cobb murder beloved trainee Victor Aguilar (Renzi Velez).
Velez described the moment before his death as perhaps the most vulnerable interaction between Oz and Victor in the entire series. He pointed out that the inner layers of masculinity between the two men prevent them from saying the words “I love you” explicitly, and that Victor conveyed this message to Oz by likening the latter to the closest thing a young teenager has to family.
“It was really taking away the last vestiges of innocence,” Farrell said of the scene. “Someone who had sacrificed so much of his life, experienced so much loss and given so much loyalty, so much love…He was seeing that light extinguished by the person who gave him all that.”
The Irish actor detailed how the team behind The Penguin had spent a year together at that point, which led to a particularly close bond between the cast and crew. He shared his hatred and respect for this novel, which ends with Victor’s arc.
“There was a dark energy that night,” Farrell said. “If you’re going to ask the audience to fall in love with the character, which I feel the audience has fallen in love with with Rhenzy’s Vic, then there’s a world where the crew is going to fall in love with that character as well.”
Deirdre O’Connell, who plays Oz’s mother Frances Cobb, said the final page of the series’ final episode required her to shed a singular tear as she lay in a comatose state, unable to experience the penthouse promise her gangster son had finally fulfilled. she has.
O’Connell explained that filming the heartbreaking scene was on her mind almost every day during the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. She said she didn’t have a specific plan to execute her last-minute performance for Frances, but Farrell did something strange that forced her to respond.
“I don’t even know if he knew he was doing it, and I don’t know how a human being could do it, but he withdrew his love,” O’Connell said. “It was quite clear in the room that Oz had withdrawn his love and I felt it, and my blood ran cold. It gave me a tear.
Showrunner Lauren LeFranc explained how she wanted to craft a version of Oz that was flawed but elicited viewers’ sympathy. She expressed her desire to present this portrayal of Oswald Cobb as an examination of the man within the antagonist that fans of the Batman universe may be familiar with from previous on-screen or comic portrayals.
Farrell highlighted the character’s complexity and multifaceted psychology as pivotal aspects behind his decision to commit to the role. He added that it was Lefranc’s understanding of the relationship between Oz and Francis—specifically the emotional subtext of the relationships between sons and their mothers—that ultimately captivated him.
“It was very human, very relatable,” Farrell said. “It was painful but there was beauty too.”
