Past meets present as both versions of Francis Cobb strike an identical pose in a newly released behind-the-scenes photo from HBO‘s The Penguin. Actresses Deirdre O’Connell and Emily Meade, who play older and younger versions of Francis Cobb respectively, shared a twinning moment dressed in identical black sequin gowns and matching hairstyles.
Meade shared the photo on Instagram with the playful caption “Broads be broading,” showcasing the two actresses embodying different eras of Colin Farrell‘s character’s mother.
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The character of Francis Cobb plays a crucial role in shaping Oswald “Oz” Cobblepot’s journey, according to O’Connell’s October interview with Collider. “If Oz loves anyone, he loves his mother, but she also knows more about him and his past than anyone else. She’s had a strong hand in shaping who he has become.”
O’Connell revealed her approach to the complex mother-son dynamic was inspired by personal connections. “There was a toughness to the women on that side of my family that was mixed with a glamor puss quality,” she explained, referencing her grandmother, a former Ziegfeld Follies showgirl. She also drew inspiration from classic mob films, particularly Gena Rowlands in Gloria and Geraldine Page’s Academy Award-nominated performance in The Pope of Greenwich Village.
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The veteran actress described Francis as someone who “must have been a great bookkeeper, not just a good bookkeeper. She must have been one of those people that could have run the whole world if she hadn’t been a woman and she hadn’t been in the place that she was in the world.”
Regarding Francis’s relationship with her son, O’Connell painted a nuanced picture: “I think she’s afraid of what she has wrought and what she has let loose on the world. She knows that she’s let someone who has no moral center, who has no empathy, and who actually is truly cold-blooded into the world, but he keeps turning this warm/hot love onto her.”
The eight-episode series delves into Oz’s ascent in Gotham’s criminal hierarchy following the events of The Batman and before its sequel. The story also introduces Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti), fresh from Arkham Asylum and determined to claim her father’s criminal empire. O’Connell hints at Francis’s perspective on Sofia, suggesting she views her as “a spoiled brat” but can’t help admiring “the glee with which Sofia is getting her revenge.
The Penguin premiered on Sept. 19 and concluded its first season on Nov. 10, with the finale simulcast on both HBO and Max. There is no word on whether the series will be renewed for a season 2.
