Colin Farrell in talks to play Penguin in The Batma

Colin Farrell and Andy Serkis are reportedly in talks for key roles in Matt Reeves's upcoming superhero movie The Batman.

Farrell has been tapped to play villain Oswald Cobblepot and his sewer-dwelling alter-ego the Penguin, while Serkis is being eyed to portray Bruce Wayne's long-suffering butler Alfred Pennyworth, according to editors at Deadline.

If the 55-year-old joins The Batman, it will mark a reunion with Reeves, who directed him in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes in 2014, and its 2017 sequel, War for the Planet of the Apes.

Pennyworth has most recently been played onscreen by Michael Caine in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy opposite Christian Bale as the crime-fighting superhero, and Jeremy Irons in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League with Ben Affleck as Batman.

The Penguin was originally played by Danny DeVito in Tim Burton's Batman Returns in 1992, with Michael Keaton as the Caped Crusader in the classic comic book movie.

The potential casting news emerges shortly after it was rumoured Matthew McConaughey might be in the running to portray Gotham City's District Attorney, Harvey Dent, who subsequently becomes Batman's adversary, Two-Face.
Robert Pattinson is set to lead the cast as the new Batman, with Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as the Riddler, and Jeffrey Wright as Police Commissioner Jim Gordon.

Jonah Hill was previously in talks to play the Riddler, but reportedly dropped out of the project after negotiations fell through with executives at Warner Bros.

The Batman is slated for release in June 2021.