Minnie Driver is set to play The Penguin in Batman: Caped Crusader

'It was joyful... she's dreadful'

The ‘Circle of Friends’ actress will voice Oswalda Cobblepot, a female interpretation of The Penguin in Prime Video’s upcoming animated series ‘Batman: Caped Crusader’.

The casting was revealed at Saturday’s San Diego Comic-Con.

The announcement started with a video message from executive producer Buce Timm who welcomed fans before showcasing the first episode of the series in what was a world premiere.

It was during the episode that Driver’s portrayal of Penguin was revealed for the first time.

Following the screening, executive producer Matt Reeves and the cast of the show, including Driver, conversed about the new series.

The 54-year-old acknowledged that loyal fans of the franchise may take issue with a female Cobblepot but insisted that the character still brings ‘the essence’ of Penguin.

She said: “If we’re lucky enough to be invited onto the stage to inhabit these characters that already exist in the ether, we just sort of rise up to meet them.

“And this was such a beautiful retelling of that villain. It was joyful and, I mean, she’s dreadful.”

Hamish Linklater who voices Batman and Jamie Chung who voices Harley Quinn also joined the conversation.

On Friday, Prime Video had given fans a sneak preview of the series by revealing an exclusive clip at the end of a panel on the streaming site’s adult animation favourites which included ‘Invincible’ and ‘The Legend of Vox Machina’.

The series will be available to stream on Prime Video as of August 1.