Another Batman adversary is getting the spotlight. Hot on the heels of villain Clayface’s big-screen debut, Poison Ivy may be next to embark on a solo outing, as a TV series focusing on the character is in development at Warner Bros. and DC Studios.
As Deadline reports, The Penguin showrunner Lauren LeFranc has been eyed to produce the project, which will go to HBO if it gets picked up. No other details, including cast or writer specifics, were disclosed, but it would reportedly not be part of Matt Reeves’ The Batman universe led by Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader. The Poison Ivy series was put on hold due to the Paramount and Warner Bros. mega-merger, and is now fully back on the board.
Should plans work out, it will mark the super-villain’s first central role. Created by Carmine Infantino and Robert Kanigher for DC Comics, The Floral Femme Fatale was first introduced in 1966 as the alter ego of Dr Pamela Isley, a botanist who gains supernatural powers to control plants and subsequently becomes an ecoterrorist in Gotham. Poison Ivy has become a mainstay in Batman’s rogues’ gallery since then, with frequent appearances in animated projects such as Batman: The Animated Series, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, and Harley Quinn. Uma Thurman of Kill Bill fame portrayed the character in the 1997 live-action film Batman & Robin.
As for LeFranc, the creative gained prominence for her work on The Penguin, which scored commercial and critical acclaim when it debuted in 2024. The Emmy-winning miniseries stars Colin Farrell as the eponymous villain, who reprises his role from 2022’s The Batman and will return for Part II. With Reeves stepping away due to a family matter, the sequel is now being helmed by Steven Soderbergh (Ocean’s Eleven) and hasn’t been attached to a new release date — initially slated for release on 2 October 2026, it was pushed back twice to 1 October 2027 and 18 February 2028.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Kevin Low
