This is shaping up to be a very busy week at Warner Bros. Discovery, as the landscape has definitely shifted with the hiring of Peter Safran and James Gunn to lead DC Studios. And while it’s unclear where their influence will first be felt, Matt Reeves’ The Batman universe continues to expand with a series centered on Colin Farrell’s Penguin, and another on the infamous Arkham Asylum.
The Arkham Asylum HBO Max series has just found its creative leader as Antonio Campos, known for hit crime series The Staircase, has been named director, showrunner, writer, and exec-producer. Campos is also known for his cerebral thrillers such as Christine, Simon Killer, and The Devil All the Time.
Campos steps into a project that has seen some significant changes. What began as a Gotham PD show led by Boardwalk Empire‘s Terence Winter, evolved into one focused on Arkham Asylum, the institution for the criminally insane that houses many of Gotham’s worst criminals. In The Batman we saw both Riddler and Joker housed there. Winter eventually left over creative differences, only to be replaced by Joe Barton (Giri/Haji) who himself exited soon after, noting recently that the creative process was “chaotic” at Warner Bros. Discover.
According to Variety, the Gotham PD series is actually still in development and not shelved as previously thought.
It’s unclear how closely-tied to the movie this Arkham Asylum show will be. Will Barry Keoghan and Paul Dano make cameos? What about Robert Pattinson, or Jeffrey Wright? Campos, whose attention has shifted to serialized projects of late, could be the right guy to get this series moving in the right direction.
