How good was The Penguin when it was all said and done? Well, let's put it this way: the worst thing about it had absolutely nothing to do with the show itself. While I go into the Batman spinoff with more than my fair share of skepticism, the great reviews on Oz Cobb's (Colin Farrell) twisted path to becoming king of Gotham City, following the events of director Matt Reeves' blockbuster, proved the doubters dead wrong. Thanks in no small part to the truly inspired casting of Cristine Miliotti as sociopathic partner-in-crime Sofia Falcone, the two leads took the series to greater heights. But despite the obvious quality of writing on display throughout each episode, one pesky detail ended up becoming a distraction for a very specific set of viewers - what the hell was up with Dr. Julian Rush?

The new character played by actor Theo Rossi ("Luke Cage," "Criminal Emily" and most recently "Carry-On") was introduced early in "The Penguin" as something of a wild card, serving as Sofia's personal psychiatrist. with a somewhat unhealthy attachment to the recently committed villain. Several flashbacks revealed that he had been an employee of Arkham Asylum for years in the past and was partially responsible for Sophia's horrific "treatment" during her incarceration. He went on to add several key layers to the mentally unbalanced antagonist after she was released, including a touch of erotica with his, ah, subdued role playing in later episodes.

While everything adds so much to the series, however, certain fans just couldn't wrap their minds around an original creation (which, by the way, helped reinforce all those "Sopranos" parallels.). No, speculation has him as the classic Batman villain, Dr. Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow. Putting aside my personal distaste for this line of thinking — sometimes, a character is allowed to exist without needing any connection to pre-established DC conventions — no less an authority than host Lauren Lefranc has officially debunked this strange a prevalent fan theory.

Folks, it's time for an intervention. I get it - this particular fan theory didn't come out of thin air. To be fair, one particular episode of The Penguin certainly seemed to hint at the idea that there was more to it behind the identity of Dr. Julian Rush, with what appeared to be a mask and glove appearing on the not-so-good doctor's desk. That would be pretty damning evidence... if only this were any other series than The Penguin and set in any other universe than the Batman world, where everything is presented more or less exactly as they appear. Would the Marvel Cinematic Universe or even Zack Snyder's DC Universe pull off a stunt like this? Probably! But I'd like to believe that Matt Reeves and his carefully selected creative team are above such twists and turns.

Either way, we can now point to The Penguin creator, showrunner and writer Lauren Lefranc as the final word on this. In an interview with ScreenRant While walking the red carpet for the 2025 Golden Globes last night, Lefranc addressed the fan theory with a refreshing bluntness:

“Well, I can say he's not the Scarecrow.

Talk about a definitive answer! I can understand why many would hope that his presence leads to something much bigger, especially considering that a new psychedelic drug like Bliss is already included in the series and that his occupation (not to mention questionable motives) certainly overlaps with the Scarecrow. . . But much of this theorizing arose from the mistaken idea that characters must they exist solely to advance the plot, rather than to reveal new angles and new flavors of our waters that we would never see otherwise. Not everyone needs to secretly be a major figure in the franchise, people!

Now that we've put that to rest, please spare a thought and prayer to all who were convinced of it poor, doomed Victor Aguilar (Renzi Feliz) it was actually Mr. Freeze all along.