‘Gotham’ Teases Joker Story Arc, Introduces Robin’s Parents [Video]
Gotham is about to play a pretty huge card to get more viewers to tune in: The Joker. The FOX series is teasing that Batman’s most iconic foe will appear during tomorrow night’s episode of the show, but is Gotham really going to introduce the villain this soon?
It certainly looks like this is the case. As the Inquisitr previously reported, a character who resembles the Joker can be seen in a promo for this week’s episode of Gotham, which is titled “The Blind Fortune Teller.” The character is named Jerome, and he’s played by Shameless actor Cameron Monaghan.
People recently shared a sneak peek of Jerome being interrogated by James Gordon (Ben McKenzie), and the Jerome in that clip seems much different than the one featured in the short Gotham promo that aired after last week’s episode. The first clip showed Jerome glaring up menacingly before bursting into maniacal laughter, but the People clip shows a calm kid answering questions about his mother’s busy sex life. You can check out both previews in the video below.
Perhaps something happens to Jerome in the “The Blind Fortune Teller” that transforms him into the type of man capable of becoming The Joker, or maybe Jerome’s dramatic personality change is the result of an encounter with a different guy who will become (or already is) The Joker. Jerome says he’s a member of the circus, meaning that he spends a lot of time around people who dress up in clown costumes, and “The Blind Fortune Teller” clip below shows a group of clowns wreaking havoc during The Flying Graysons’ trapeze act. You read that right — the very beginning of Robin’s origin story will also be explored tomorrow night.
According to Spoiler TV, the future father and mother of Dick Grayson/Robin will be from feuding circus families (Gotham seems to be setting them up for a tragic Romeo and Juliet-style love story). James Gordon and his new ladylove, Dr. Leslie Thompkins (Morena Baccarin), will encounter Robin’s future parents when they go on that circus date that they talked about last week. Of course there will be plenty of drama under the big top, and somebody will end up dead.
During an interview with TV Guide, Gotham creator Bruno Heller confirmed that “The Blind Fortune Teller” will be the start of The Joker story arc. However, he refused to say whether or not Cameron Monaghan is playing the Joker.
“I won’t tell you that’s the Joker, but I will tell you this is not a trick. This is not a game. This is the beginning of the Joker saga.”
Heller also talked to the Hollywood Reporter about the Joker’s origin story.
“What I can guarantee is that you have to follow that brilliant young actor Cameron Monaghan down the line, and you will see how this leads to the character we all know and love.”
The next episode of Gotham airs Monday at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. Do you think Cameron Monaghan will turn out to be the Joker?
[Image credits: FOX]
