No, The Penguin Did Not Sneakily Introduce The Scarecrow
Sometimes a doctor is just a doctor.
The Penguin expanded Matt Reeves’ Batman universe by zooming in on the criminal underbelly of Gotham, and the chaos it found itself in after the demise of Carmine Falcone. The power vacuum was soon filled by two opposing forces: Oz Cobb, an upstart crime lord, and Sofia Falcone, Carmine’s daughter, who promised a new era for the Falcone family. It was Oz who won out in the end, sending Sofia back to Arkham Asylum and allowing the Penguin to become the villain comic book fans know and love.
But was he the only Batman villain featured in The Penguin? A fun fan theory suggested there’s another one hiding in plain sight, but showrunner Lauren LeFranc just shot it down.
Theo Rossi as Dr. Julian Rush in The Penguin.
A fan theory suggests Sofia Falcone’s psychiatrist and sidekick, Dr. Julian Rush, is actually the Scarecrow, the villainous doctor with a penchant for developing fear toxins. The similarities are there: The Penguin introduced Bliss, a hallucinogenic that could be tied to the Scarecrow’s work, and a shot of Rush’s desk in Episode 4 revealed a strange mask and glove that definitely evoked the supervillain’s classic look.
However, showrunner Lauren LeFranc was quick to shoot down the theory. When asked about Dr. Rush’s true identity on the red carpet of the 82nd Golden Globes by ScreenRant, she had a simple answer: “Well, I can say he's not the Scarecrow.”
The glove and mask on Dr. Rush’s desk seemed to suggest he was hiding a dark secret.
Actors and staffers have been misleading about secret identities before, but that’s a pretty blunt no. But if Rush isn’t the Scarecrow, then what’s his deal? Perhaps this is a way to give The Batman director Matt Reeves the freedom to interpret the villain how he wants, if he even wants to introduce him at all. Rumors of The Batman Part II introducing a Rogue’s Gallery have circled since The Batman premiered back in 2022, and the sequel was just delayed because the script was still being written. At this point, anything is still on the table.
For now, it appears Dr. Julian exists not just as an Easter egg, but also as a red herring. Something similar happened in Gotham: there were multiple fake-outs where it looked like a character was obviously the Joker, only for the series to take several seasons to actually reveal his identity. So while this debunking may be disappointing, at least The Penguin comes by it honestly.
