Poison Ivy TV Series Finally Takes Root at HBO With a ‘The Penguin’ Mastermind on Board

Gotham’s rogues gallery has always been a goldmine for storytellers, yet few of its residents have been as underused on screen as the woman who turns a garden into a weapon. Interest in a Poison Ivy TV series has simmered for months, and the rumor mill has rarely let it rest.

This past summer, scooper Jeff Sneider claimed on The Hot Mic that DC Studios is developing a live-action show about the character. Speculation quickly turned to whether it would live in James Gunn’s DC Universe or Matt Reeves’ Batman world. Then The Ankler reported that DC and HBO Max had passed on pitches for both Poison Ivy and Catwoman shows, leaving fans with mixed signals.

Now the picture is clearer. Deadline reports that ‘The Penguin’ showrunner and executive producer Lauren LeFranc is in talks to join the Warner Bros. and DC Comics series as a producer. Variety has confirmed that the show is in the works at HBO, and The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed LeFranc’s involvement.

The road to this point has not been smooth. According to Deadline, plans to move forward were on pause because of the Paramount and Warner Bros. merger. The latest development suggests the idea has been revived. Details remain thin. LeFranc would only be producing, not writing the series, and no writers are currently attached. No one has been cast as the lead either.

One notable detail is where the show will not live. Deadline reports that the series is separate from Matt Reeves’ Batman universe, even though LeFranc built her reputation inside it. It is unclear whether the project would fall under the DC Universe or exist as a standalone Elseworlds story.

It is also very early days. HBO has yet to order the project as a series, so fans should treat this as development news rather than a greenlight. LeFranc’s track record explains much of the excitement. ‘The Penguin’ aired on HBO in 2024 and became a hit with critics and fans, with Colin Farrell winning an Emmy and a Golden Globe. The series went on to win 9 Emmys in 2025.

Before Gotham, she worked as a writer and producer on ABC’s ‘Agents of SHIELD’. She also signed a 2-year overall deal with HBO and HBO Max, which makes her a natural fit to shepherd another villain-led story for the network.

Poison Ivy has had a long career on screen without ever carrying her own show. She has never fronted a television series, though she has appeared in ‘Batman: The Animated Series’, ‘Batman: The Brave and the Bold’, ‘Harley Quinn’, ‘Gotham’ and ‘Batwoman’. In live action on the big screen, Uma Thurman played her in ‘Batman & Robin’ in 1997.

Her most prominent recent presence is in animation. Lake Bell voices the character in HBO Max’s adult animated series ‘Harley Quinn’. A solo live-action series would give the eco-warrior room to be more than a supporting player. Fans are already imagining the possibilities. One fan on X called for a gothic plant-horror take with wildly ambitious production design.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!