Did Danny DeVito Really 'Lust After' Michelle Pfeiffer in ‘Batman Returns’?

Synopsis
In a recent revelation, Danny DeVito candidly shared his feelings about Michelle Pfeiffer during the filming of 'Batman Returns.' Discover how his on-screen romance with Catwoman influenced his creative journey, including a romantic twist in a recent comic tale.
Key Takeaways
- Danny DeVito felt a strong attraction to Michelle Pfeiffer during the filming of ‘Batman Returns’.
- He played the villain Oswald Cobblepot, also known as the Penguin.
- Pfeiffer's character, Catwoman, rejected Oswald's advances in the film.
- In 2021, DeVito wrote a short story that romantically linked the Penguin and Catwoman.
- DeVito expressed enthusiasm about the operatic elements of the film and is open to reprising his role.
Los Angeles, June 3 (NationPress) Renowned Hollywood actor Danny DeVito recently opened up about his feelings for former co-star Michelle Pfeiffer. He admitted that he had a strong attraction to Pfeiffer during the filming of the 1992 film directed by Tim Burton, ‘Batman Returns’.
DeVito portrayed the villain Penguin, sharing the screen with Pfeiffer's Catwoman and Michael Keaton's Batman, as reported by ‘People’ magazine.
During a discussion with Colin Farrell for Variety’s Actors on Actors series, he shared, “She was a goddess. If I knew she was going to be in a scene that day.”
Farrell jokingly asked, “Did you brush your teeth that morning?” to which DeVito replied, “I got all flushed.” The star of ‘It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia’ humorously added, “Put extra makeup on, ‘Give me another pound of makeup’. It was very difficult.”
At 67, Pfeiffer was described by DeVito as “just so wonderful. And I lusted after her.” He further acknowledged that it was his character, Oswald Cobblepot, the Penguin, who was infatuated, saying, “I kind of feel like she liked it. She liked Oswald.”
In Batman Returns, Selina Kyle, or Catwoman, spurns Oswald's advances. However, in 2021, DeVito penned a short story where the two characters were romantically linked, featured in DC Comics' Gotham City Villains, an anthology celebrating Batman's iconic villains.
“I got into the fact that I've always been a big fan of Michelle Pfeiffer's, and the Penguin obviously lusts after Catwoman,” the Oscar nominee told Entertainment Weekly at that time. “So I figured I'd put those two together.”
Farrell, who reprised the Penguin role in HBO’s ‘The Penguin’, which premiered last fall, asked DeVito if he would return as the DC Comics villain. “Absolutely,” DeVito responded. “You can go off the rails with something. The operatic element of Tim Burton’s Batman Returns was my favorite thing about it, the music and sets and the whole thing. The Shakespeare of it, ‘All the world’s a stage’. Oswald’s realm and his penguins and his minions and his passion. I loved that.”