The Penguin Star Breaks Down Episode 4's Shocking Death [SPOILERS]

WARNING: This article includes SPOILERS from The Penguin episode 4.Following their introduction in The Penguin episode 4, the latest Batman villain actor to join Matt Reeves' DC franchise has spoken to ScreenRant about the episode's most shocking moment. As The Penguin TV show continues to build out The Batman universe, episode 4 marked the introduction of another foe from the Dark Knight's mythology. The latest episode explores Sofia Falcone's time at Arkham Asylum, and the episode introduces the character of Magpie to The Penguin's cast, who is played by Marié Botha.

While DC Comics readers know Magpie best as a talented jewel thief, The Batman universe audience gets a different picture of her as she becomes a brief connection for Sofia while in Arkham Asylum. However, as Sofia begins to feel the damage of her treatment at Arkham Asylum, Magpie becomes collateral damage as the Falcone daughter ends up killing the inmate, making her introduction in The Penguin episode 4 not only surprising but very brief. In the run up to the episode's release, ScreenRant spoke with Botha about taking on the role of Magpie in Reeves' The Batman universe, and whether this may be the final time people have seen the character on-screen.

Magpie's Actor Breaks Down Her Arkham Death

Given that The Penguin is a comic book show, dead doesn't always mean dead. ScreenRant asked Botha if it was possible that Sofia killing Magpie was actually just in her head, as a response to her trauma in the famous Gotham City institute. That, of course, would potentially leave the door open for her to come back to The Batman universe. While Botha brought up a key DC story in Magpie's history, the actress pointed out that as far as she knows, the death actually happened in The Penguin episode 4 while also sharing the following:

Marié Botha: Anything is possible. However, I think in this particular show, Sofia really did murder Magpie. In the comics, Magpie is resurrected again later on during Blackest Night, but I am more interested in her backstory and digging deeper into what that is. I have only played it out in my own mind, I would love to see what that would look like in the mind of Matt Reeves or Lauren LeFranc. What I do know, is that there is a part of me that feels not quite ready to say goodbye to Magpie just yet.

Marié Botha On Magpie's DC Story & What She Would Want From Her Future

If it were to be revealed that Magpie didn't actually die, Botha had a lot of ideas about what she would love to see explored in the comic book foe. One of the key points that Botha put a lot of emphasis on in the interview was seeing Magpie starting out having worked at the Gotham Museum of Antiquities and how her history could eventually lead to her becoming the famous Batman villain. She also looks at a crucial comic book element that would potentially fit with Robert Pattinson's Batman, as she expressed the following:

Marié Botha: I see a lot of myself in her. I was teased quite a bit in school and felt isolated for a long time as a kid. I’d like to investigate and take a deep dive into her past, for sure. She has that scar on her cheek for a reason, where did it come from? Who was her stepmother, and what did she do to her? In the comics, Batman takes pity on her and treats her kindly, so she develops this obsession with him, believing they are meant to be together. That could be cool to explore, as well. And then obviously her epic journey as her villain self. Her starting out as curator of Gotham Museum of Antiquities and then being driven mad by all the precious, shiny artifacts around her that she cannot possess. In simple terms, all she wants is a Judith Leiber bag, so she decides to simply steal it and replace it with an explosive knock-off Judith Leiber bag. That’s pretty deep if you ask me. Let’s unpack that, too.

How Marié Botha Was Cast As Magpie In The Penguin

Botha also opened up about what the audition process was like for The Penguin episode 4, as her breakdown didn't initially reveal that the role she was auditioning for was for Magpie, which is very common with comic book films and/or TV shows. According to Botha, she had to do a bit of detective work to figure out what her audition piece for The Penguin was actually for, as she shared the following process and what influences she drew from for her portrayal of the DC villainess:

Marié Botha: I first got the audition while I was in South Africa visiting family. The breakdown was very sparse, and the names of the characters had been changed. I had to play detective a bit, and really dissect the scenes in order to get as much information on the character as I could, using what I’d been given. I could deduce it was set in a prison — Arkham made sense for obvious reasons — therefore, she must be a villain of some sort. I then went ahead in cobbling together what I know from the Matt Reeves Arkham world (Paul Dano’s Riddler, Barry Keoghan’s Joker), and further filled in some of the blanks with traits of my personal favorite villains of all time, like Bellatrix Lestrange for example. When the callback came around, I was told who the character was. I was thrilled, and immediately started digging into the history of Magpie and who she is in the DC Universe. The callback was on Zoom with the director of episode 4, Helen Shaver, as well as casting. Because I was in South Africa, six hours ahead in time difference, the audition was at midnight my time and 6 pm New York time. I took a nap, drank a bunch of espresso and took a cold shower beforehand. I was lucky because it wouldn’t have been bad if I looked a little rough. Having a dark circle under the eye and disheveled hair worked to my advantage. I worked with Helen for a while, we discussed our takes of the character and then tried a few things. The next day I got the call, and I was on a plane back to New York for hair and makeup tests.

The Penguin airs new episodes on Sunday nights at 9 PM on HBO, followed by releases on Max.

Your Rating 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 star 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star 0/10 Leave a Review 45 9.5/10 The Penguin Created by Lauren LeFranc, The Penguin is a crime-drama spin-off television series of 2022's film The Batman. Set shortly after the events of The Batman, Oz Cobb, A.K.A. the Penguin, begins his rise in the underworld of Gotham City as he contends with the daughter of his late boss, Carmine Falcone, for control of the crime family's empire. Cast Colin Farrell , Cristin Milioti , Rhenzy Feliz , Michael Kelly , Shohreh Aghdashloo , Deirdre O'Connell , Clancy Brown , James Madio , Scott Cohen , Michael Zegen , Carmen Ejogo , Theo Rossi Release Date September 19, 2024 Seasons 1 Streaming Service(s) HBO Max Franchise(s) Batman , DC Elseworlds Showrunner Lauren LeFranc Prequel The Batman (2022) Avg Episode Length 60 Mins Expand

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