The Penguin Season 1 Finale Interview: Rhenzy Feliz Breaks Down The Batman Show's Shocking Twist Of Fate

The Penguin finale saw Oz Cobb's rise of power to a whole new level, causing him to become even more dangerous than when the world saw him in The Batman. However, the HBO series did not let viewers forget that Cobb is an iconic DC Comics villain, and The Penguin's breakout character Victor Aguilar sadly did not survive the events of the finale. Towards the final stretch of The Penguin episode 8, Oz makes the decision to kill Victor, wanting to cut off anything or anyone that could make him vulnerable.

Ahead of The Penguin finale, ScreenRant sat down with Feliz for an exclusive interview to go into the depths of the eighth and final episode of the HBO drama. Feliz reflected on his time as part of The Penguin cast and shared his reaction to Victor's death and Oz's hand in it. Feliz also addressed whether or not he could come back with a twist in a future The Penguin story, and discussed the possibility of re-visiting his Marvel role in The Runaways.

Rhenzy Feliz Breaks Down The Penguin Season 1 Finale

ScreenRant: Congrats on a phenomenal season of television! Have you been keeping up with what people been saying online?

Rhenzy Feliz: First, thank you, thanks for that! I've been keeping up with it a bit. My mom definitely is also keeping up and she relays a lot of information to me too of [what] people are saying, I think maybe I'm too scared or shy to jump online and see [what] people are saying. But it seems like anytime I have gotten taken a peek, people have been very, very kind about the show, very kind about all the performances. So it's been nice.

Rhenzy Feliz On Learning About Victor's Fate In The Penguin

"I knew from the beginning, before I even showed up in New York to shoot."

Did Lauren LeFranc tell you from the get-go, or did you find when you read the script for the finale that this is the faith for Victor?

Rhenzy Feliz: No, I knew from the beginning, before I even showed up in New York to shoot, and I had a meeting in LA, and she laid out the entire arc for Victor. We knew what we were setting out to accomplish, or to do from the very jump. I think it made it easier, for sure, but we were always working towards that big finale, that kind of big moment for the audience and you grow all this time as an audience getting to know Victor and understanding him, and getting to know him in the lens with Oz and how they interact together and then sort of see that be the demise of it all is. it was definitely like a gut punch.

I know some actors prefer knowing their whole season arc before they start shooting or some prefer finding out script by script. Did this affect you as you were performing it through all the months you were shooting?

Rhenzy Feliz: I think it just informed me. I knew I had more information on kind of what we were trying to accomplish. I knew the point of it, and I understood why it kind of needed to happen. So just making sure that was always on my mind what the ending was, I always knew where we were headed. So everything in between was sort of built in order to make that moment hopefully feel impactful or important.

Knowing the death was coming, what was your reaction when you first read his final scene?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: I think the thing that I was most excited about was the scene just before the death, the kind of dialog that me and Ozshare, because I'd known that the death was going to be long and kind of drawn out and painful, and that it wasn't going to be a quick, like shot to the head or something. I knew it was going to be pretty gruesome. So I was hoping that the scene right before would be a really strong contrast to not be this super dark, angry, long, drawn out death scene. It would be something more vulnerable, and something more, almost like beautiful and light and soft. That's what I hoped that the scene would be.

And then when I read it, it was even better than I could have imagined. Lauren and the team wrote something that was just so soft spoken when I read it, it read in a soft tone. Me and Colin knew about [it,] we kind of circled that day on the calendars, in a way, he and I would talk about it as it was coming up., like, 'Are you ready? Next week we have the big scene,' and then a few days out, '[In the] next couple days, [are] you ready?' So we both knew that day was coming, and you got to nail the moments before in order for that moment to hit when it's happening. So reading it, what it was, [was] like, 'Oof, okay, yeah, we're doing it. We're doing this thing. It's actually happening. It's all coming to an end,' and you [are] trying to do your best.

How many takes did you do that? I guess it had to be very technical because he's holding you and everything. But how many takes did you guys get to do it?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: I remember we had to do that first scene [with] the dialog a bunch of times. We shot it actually concurrently, so we shot it while he was doing his scenes, I was doing my close ups. So it's kind of perfect. We had to kind of do it together. But the actual killing we did a few times, I remember because I was really trying to hold my breath for as much of it as I could. He's obviously not really choking [me] to death. [laughs] So I would hold my breath and I even told [him] something like, 'Push, push in.' Or like, 'Don't be too afraid. Get in, so I can feel it' and we did that, maybe 13, 14, 15 times.

Because then sometimes they would want to get my coverage of it, and sometimes they would want to get my feet or my hands, and then they would want to get Colin's face, and then the larger Colin shots. We did it a few times, just to make sure we got it all covered. And the thing is that it just takes a long time, the dying itself. That was one of the things Lauren talked about from the very beginning, is that it's not going to be a quick death, it's going to be kind of drawn out, and it's going to take a while. There's going to be so many moments where the audience is like, 'Stop, stop, stop!' throughout the scene, but he never does.

I watched this finale a couple of times now, and the first time, I remember going like, 'Maybe he's not gonna go through with it, maybe he will let him go!' He's just gonna throw him into the river and be like, 'Just get out of Gotham, kid!' I love how you were able to keep it very guarded and secret. Was it like that through that day? How open, really, was it? Did you know that there were people skulking around?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: It was interesting. I think towards the beginning of the series, paparazzi were way more interested in what we were doing with Colin and the prosthetics and everything. By the end, they left us alone, so we were out in the open on Roosevelt Island, totally visible to anyone who wanted to walk. It was [a] park, so anybody could have just walked by. Also, I'm actually kind of surprised that there were no pictures or videos taken of that, because you're right. It's kind of like out in the open.

We almost lent ourselves to being able to get spotted, but it didn't end up happening. So that's good, but it definitely felt different on set that day, that's for sure. You felt there was a hush, like there wasn't as much fun going on. Honestly, the last couple episodes aren't very fun in general. So the show starts out a little bit lighter, and then as the show goes on, it gets darker and darker. We've kind of felt that on set as well. It gets into a darker, grittier place, and by the end there, that was one of the last days we shot. It wasn't the last day, but it was one of the last days, we could feel it on set, like, 'Oh man, none of this is very fun.'

Rhenzy Feliz Adresses All The DC Theories About Victor Before The Penguin Finale

"The one that's heartbreaking is my friends and family..."

I've seen a lot online, and I know you have been asked, asked a lot about it, where a lot of people have had these theories about how Victor not only fits into the DC canon but the larger The Batman universe. Has it kind of been hard, going like, 'Sorry guys...I won't be around!'

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: [Laughs] It's kind of crazy. The one that's heartbreaking is my friends and family keep asking me, 'What about season 2? Is there another season? What about The Batman 2?' and I just keep having to go, 'Maybe, yeah. It makes sense, if they do another season, I don't see how I'm not in it.' and that's been the hard part is just keeping it away from them, because they keep asking. Today, I had a cousin hit me up, 'My co workers are asking is there gonna be another season?' I'm like, 'Dude, it's just the one. I have no idea.' [They're like,] 'Hopefully you guys get renewed' and I'm like, 'If they only knew...'

Why do you think Oz killed Vic to remove his vulnerability, but he kept someone like Eve alive? Is there something else he wasn't saying? Because I'm sure people are going to be wondering the same thing on Sunday night.

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: Oh, interesting...I guess the only answer I could think of was that maybe he feels a certain way about Victor that isn't necessarily expendable. I think he he saw how vulnerable he was [with] his mother, and how he's willing to give up everything to get his mom back, and how much pain that would have brought him. I think he just wants to do away with that pain. I think if [they] took Eve, he would also be in some sort of pain. But maybe not. Maybe he thinks Victor, it's more vulnerable with Victor, like maybe he's got a stronger connection with me for whatever reason, and he thinks that he makes him weak, and so you can't have that kind of weakness, and vulnerability around so he's got to get rid of him.

I know maybe I read too much into this when I was watching the scene, but if Victor just hadn't said, 'You're like family to me, Oz,' do you think there's a scenario where Oz would have let him go, or that they just would have kept working together?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: I don't think it's necessarily that sentence. It's interesting, though. I almost want to hear what Colin says about that, if you ever get to ask him. I think that he knows it's something that he's got to do just because of how much what he's going, where he's headed, he's now at the top of the game.

For him to have Vic around, only makes him weaker. So I think he's going into that scene understanding what it is he has to do. Victor is a smart kid as well, I think he knows that. I think Vic was the reason why he figured out that last moment, he says, 'I didn't see the play, but you kind of figured it out.' So there could be multiple reasons why he decides, 'You know what, this kid has to go.' You almost even see there's a couple moments there at the end where Oz is kind of getting jealous of Victor and his mom's relationship. So I think it could be a multitude of things sprinkled in, but I think the major part is his vulnerability. I think he cares about Victor so much.

Did Batman Fail Victor & Crown Point In The Penguin?

"There's a lot of people in Crown Point who are suffering, and there doesn't seem to be help coming."

Having seen Vic go through everything that he did and watch Oz's rise and the gang war in Gotham, do you think there's a case to be said that Batman failed Gotham and people like Victor?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: Interesting. It's hard, if you really step back, it's hard for me to blame someone like Batman, because he's the only one trying to help, and he's only one man. It's like, 'Can you save everyone? You can't save everyone.' Because you think about what more could the guy have done? He did everything he could to figure out The Riddler's plan. I think it's hard for me to blame someone like Batman. [if] I'm being honest, but it is interesting to think about. There's a lot of people in Crown Point who are suffering, and there doesn't seem to be help coming.

And if you look at Crown Point, when we drive through it, it's not in a good spot at all. The city, no one seems to really give a s--t about what's going on there. Batman, especially at the beginning, when we meet him in The Batman, he's, he's more angry, he call himself Vengeance. He's not someone that necessarily is looking to help the little guy. But more seems like to me, beat the s--t out of the people who are enacting violence on the city. And I think Batman is like growing and learning, and by the end, you see that he's decided to become something different than what he's been thus far. I think it's interesting to see Matt and company take the second movie to see what is Batman now versus what he wasn't [in] the first one.

"I think we put forward a lot of effort, and we did it in unison."

Many are calling The Penguin the best DC show that's ever been made by many people, even here on ScreenRant; what are you most proud of in your time having played Victor?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: I'm almost proud of the kind of connection that we were all able to make in making the show like me, Colin, the producers, Lauren, the writers, the creators, we all got pretty close. We all got to the point where we really loved what we were making, when we were making it. I think we thought it was something special as long as we could when reading the scripts, I was kind of in awe. To get to the feeling of like, 'Man, we might make something really cool here,' that crossed my mind a few times. This a pretty cool thing that we're getting to make, and getting them showing up every day, it never felt like anybody was slacking.

We shot this thing for about four months, pre-strike, and then almost three after the strike. To have this focus that we had, and to show up every day and never slack, never take a day off, that is something that I can be really proud of because we really did. I think we put forward a lot of effort, and we did it in unison. It wasn't like someone was doing more than the other, or someone was trying harder than else. Everybody was doing their thing, and that's something I think I'm pretty proud of.

Whether Or Not A Return To The Penguin Is Possible If Season 2 Happens

"You can see in his face, that it hurts him to have done that."

We know Colin is going to be back for The Batman - Part II, but if there were to be a The Penguin season 2, even though Victor is dead, there's always the idea that he could haunt Oz. Do you think that we are with where we left Oz in this finale? Do you think that he is going to feel guilty about this? And would you want to come back, essentially, as a ghost or hallucination to mess with him a little bit?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: I think it would have to make sense. The kind of world that Matt is creating... I mean memories for sure, like PTSD, like you can have these sort of guilt feelings. I think Oz will have it in the back of his mind that he did something like this. But Oz's pretty narcissistic, and I don't think he feels all the feelings the same way the rest of us do. So I think that if there's anyone that wouldn't feel guilty, he might be one of the few.

But I think you can see it in his face after he kills me. You can see in his face that it hurts him to have done that. So there is still some humanity left in him, although it [is]quickly fading. It feels like by the end of the show, but it would have to make sense - I'd be open to ideas, seeing what they said. But I love getting to do the show. I love getting to play Victor. I love getting to play opposite Colin and the rest of the cast. So I'd be open, it would have to make sense, but I'd be open, sure.

The MCU Multiverse Makes Way For A Return To The Runaways

"I think if there was a call, again, it would have to make sense."

I have loved you since you were in this little show called Runaways and Alex Wilder was one of the most fascinating characters of all of those seasons. Because we have started seeing some of these Marvel TV shows come back that were pre-Disney+ era, they're now becoming canon to the larger MCU. If Kevin Feige came calling, saying, 'You know what, I think it's time to bring back the Runaways,' would you come back, and would you want to keep exploring their story? I just want to see you back with that cast because you guys were so good together.

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: Thanks, that's real sweet! I would love to work with those guys again. I would love to work with the actors, you know, the rest of the Runaways. I love them. I still keep in touch on this day, so I love them as human beings. I think we're a little bit old now to be the Runaways, but I could see it. I could see it working somehow. I think if there was a call, again, it would have to make sense, and we'd read it, and we'd dive in, and we tried to make the best kind of story we could to be a part of something but I love getting to work with that company. I love getting to work with those people. So I would definitely be open to it, 100%

Even though they might be a little older now, you could still see what their lives look like today, now as young adults, because you guys were like 15-16, in those seasons, right?

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: Yeah, exactly, it could be like a time jump. We could be older now and see what happened to them as they got older.

Because we watched the future Alex that we see, and I went, 'How would Rhenzy play him now,' if he were to succumb to that darkness? Is that something that would really want to drive you back to Marvel and kind of go, 'Yeah, let's see it!'

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: That would be pretty awesome. Because I just think it's been so much time, that was 2019, when we shot that, so it's been five years. I think I would like to think that I've improved in my abilities. I would like to think so. So I think it'd be fun. It'd be fun to attack that again, try it again, or even something similar. It doesn't have to be the same role. I'm just so excited with where my career is right now, where my life is right now, and what I've learned, and I'm excited to attack new roles and to try and figure out new things and to explore new characters. It's all very exciting right now. I'm still very much in love with this thing, and so I would welcome any of those challenges for sure.

After promoting The Penguin, what is next for you? Is there anything you can share that won't get you in trouble?​​​​​​​

​​​​​​​Rhenzy Feliz: We're close on things here and there. there's conversations being had, nothing's finalized yet. I'm still a young actor in this thing, and I'm getting to the point now where things are becoming a bit easier, but it's still a hustle. I think it's always going to be that way. I even talk to guys like Colin, and they still have to work for their things and figure it out. I don't think the hustle ever really ends, you have to keep pushing. And that's kind of exciting, it keeps life exciting. It doesn't get stagnant, [it] doesn't get boring. So that's the stage right now, just trying to push to get to the next thing and trying to find the right next thing is really important too.

More About The Penguin Season 1

Starring Colin Farrell as The Penguin, the eight-episode DC Studios drama series continues The Batman epic crime saga that filmmaker Matt Reeves began with Warner Bros. Pictures’ global blockbuster “The Batman,” and centers on the character played by Farrell in the film. The first look was revealed today exclusively during Warner Bros. Discovery’s unveiling of the Max streaming service on the Warner Bros. lot in Los Angeles. The previously announced cast includes Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz, Michael Kelly, Shohreh Aghdashloo and Deirdre O’Connell, with Clancy Brown and Michael Zegen recurring.

The series is executive produced by Matt Reeves, Dylan Clark, Colin Farrell, Lauren LeFranc, who writes and serves as showrunner, Craig Zobel, who directs the first three episodes, and Bill Carraro. Based on characters created for DC by Bob Kane with Bill Finger, THE PENGUIN is produced by Reeves’ 6th & Idaho Productions and Dylan Clark Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television, where Reeves and 6th & Idaho are under an overall deal. 6th & Idaho’s Daniel Pipski also serves as executive producer and Rafi Crohn is co-executive producer.

Click here to check out our other The Penguin interviews:

• The Penguin Episode 1 Interview - Director/Executive Producer Craig Zobel
• The Penguin Cast Talk Colin Farrell's Prosthetics & Batman Fighting Tactics On The Red Carpet
• The Penguin Episode 2 Interview - Director/Executive Producer Craig Zobel
• The Penguin Episode 3 Interview - Director/Executive Producer Craig Zobel
• The Penguin Episode 4: Magpie Actor Tackles Arkham Asylum & Sofia Falcone's Backstory

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