As part of The Batman Epic Crime Saga,The Penguincomes toHBO and Max on Jul 19, 2025, focusing on Oswald Cobblepott as he tries to fill the criminal void left by Carmine Falcone. While nobody expected The Penguin of all characters to get his own series, fans are excited to see the next chapter in Matt Reeves' Batman universe.
IfThe Penguindoes well, perhaps it will only be the beginning of a wave of shows focusing on Batman villains. As a bonus, now that the Matt Reeves universe will be coexisting separately with James Gunn’s DC Universe with its own Batman, villain shows could arise in that continuity as well.
8Man-Bat
The Ideal Villain For A Monster Horror Series
Matt Reeves brought a lot of horror vibes inThe Batman, from Riddler’s twisted murders to even the way Batman conducted his crime-fighting. This would make him ideal to adapt Man-Bat to the big screen, even in his moregrounded take on Gotham City, showing Kirk Langstrom working on a serum that will cure humans of deafness but ends up transforming into a bat/human hybrid.
The story of a scientist transforming into a monster is nothing new, but a more detailed and graphic transformation into Man-Bat would genuinely frighten some viewers. It would essentially become DC’s version ofThe Fly, even down to the loved one being a victim of the doctor’s transformation, Kirk’s wife Francine. If Reeves feels that is too much for his world, the DCU could adopt the idea.
7Harley Quinn
Harleen’s Twisted and Tragic Turn to Harley Makes For a Great Story
Harleen Quinzel could begin as a bright young doctor working at Arkham Asylum and, rather than gloss over her originas the DC Extended Universe did, a series could show her in detail as a great psychiatrist and her tragic fall from grace. She works with different villains in Arkham, including the Joker, which is what sets her down a dark path across one or even multiple episodes.
Matt Reeves' take in The Batman Epic Crime Saga lends itself to a scarier criminal side to Harley Quinn going on a crusade of destruction in Gotham City. Meanwhile, a series set in James Gunn’s DCU could embrace the fun, wild, and fantastical side of Harley going on adventures through Gotham’s underworld, constantly blurring the line between anti-hero and villain.
6Red Hood
The DCU Would Benefit From Expanding The Bat-Family
More fitting for James Gunn’s DCU, Jason Todd has been featured in many animated movies and video games as a fan-favorite villain and anti-hero. However, his debut on live-action television on Titans was divisive at best among fans. With a proper DC Universe where there is more connectivity, Red Hood could start on his own and eventually join later Batman projects.
Red Hood’s gun-toting methods and hatred for the criminal underbelly would make for standout action sequences and brutality. In many ways, Red Hood is considered DC’s answer toThe Punisherand that could be the case with a series, taking inspiration from Jon Bernthal’sThe Punisherseries, which mixed modern noir, action, and drama into one.
5Deadshot
John Wick Paved The Way For DC’s Greatest Assassin
Whether Will Smith returns to the role or is recast, Deadshot deserves to be more than a one-time character. In a universe where some of the worst criminals exist, Deadshot is one of the few with a genuine moral compass, even if he tries to deny it. That alone could make for an interesting story about an assassin set in the DC universe.
Even if Deadshot were to be set in The Batman Epic Crime Saga, it would allow Matt Reeves to explore the criminal underworld of Gotham City even more by showing Deadshot working with or against other famous assassins,akin toJohn Wickmovies. This could lead to characters such as Deathstroke, Lady Shiva, or Bronze Tiger.
4Harvey Dent
Harvey’s Tragic Origins Would Be A Great Psychological Crime Thriller
The tragedy of Harvey Dent is famous but is often rushed in Batman movies due to the limited time to tell it. A series set in The Batman Epic Crime Saga would allow audiences to get a proper sense of Harvey Deny being a great District Attorney for Gotham andone of Batman’s best friends, while also showcasing Harvey’s struggle with repressed anger resulting in Dissociative Identity Disorder.
Films such asSplithave shown the potential for a story centered around this character. Continuing with the idea ofThe Batmanuniverse embracing horror, Harvey Dent’s evolution into Two-Face could be as much of a crime thriller as it is a psychological horror, especially if it is told purely through Two-Face’s perspective.
3Catwoman
A Heist Thriller Starring Zoë Kravitz Was Teased
At the end ofThe Batman, Catwoman leaves Gotham and references Blüdhaven as her destination. This specificity has left some curious if Zoë Kravitz would be getting her own spin-off, focusing on Selina Kyle taking on other heists and scores, stealing from other criminals and corrupt officials.
This could open up her being an enemy to more Batman villains including Black Mask, Rupert Thorne, or even The Great White Shark. Like with Deadshot, Catwoman’s story would allow audiences to see how deep the rabbit hole of crime goes in this universe while showingSelina’s honorable side as an anti-hero, such as when she takes care of another young thief named Holly Robinson.
2Clayface
Basil Karlo Is Terrifying As A Monster Or A Killer
At one point, filmmaker Mike Flanagan, who is known forThe Haunting Of Hill House,Doctor Sleep, andMidnight Mass, proposed a Clayface horror movie to Warner Bros. but was rejected. With James Gunn now in charge of DC Studios and having approved projects such as Creature Commandos and Swamp Thing, perhaps he could bring Mike Flanagan back for Clayface.
Whether it is the giant shapeshifting blob of clay akin toBatman: The Animated Seriesor a deranged serial killer, Clayface is one of the more distinctive Batman villainswho has never been in live-action. A new series could even be a middle-ground between the two portrayals, with Basil Karlo being a killer while also slowly mutating into the clay monster, thus embracing body horror.
1The Joker
The Batman Set Up A New Dynamic For The Clown Prince Of Crime
With the Joaquin Phoenix movies embracing an Elseworld take on the Clown Prince Of Crime, Matt Reeves’s universe seems to already be embracing the strange with Barry Keoghan’s Joker. In a now-famous deleted scene, the Joker is confirmed to have been in Arkham Asylum for over a year, and he has a unique dynamic withRobert Pattinson’s version of Batmanin the 2022 movie.
The Joker works with Batman, akin to Hannibal Lecter working with Will Graham inRed Dragon. Since this Joker is a man who fell into a vat of chemicals, the series could focus on his rise to supervillainy, including his fateful first encounter with Batman, while also featuring a present-day plot of working with the GCPD as he slowly gains more friends at Arkham Asylum after the Riddler.
