‘Gotham’ Star Cory Michael Smith Teases Nygma’s Evolution As Riddler

Warning: This article may contain spoilers for Season 3B of Gotham.

One of the greatest stories running in Gotham has been the origin story for the Riddler, which has intertwined with Penguin’s own origin story in the current season. As Gotham returns tomorrow, fans will see Cory Michael Smith’s Edward Nygma get even closer to becoming a full-fledged supervillain, complete with his eye-catching green suit. In anticipation of that big Gotham reveal, Smith talks about his evolution into the Riddler and gives his first reaction to the Riddler get-up that will become his trademark outfit for future episodes of the DC Comics-based series.

Gotham Goes Green with the Riddler

One of the most exciting aspects of developing a villain on Fox’s Gotham is getting to don a new costume and, as USA Today reports, that was something Cory had given much thought. An emerald suit topped with a matching bowler hat and a cane with a question mark on the handle seemed perfectly flamboyant for the Gotham star’s character, but, when he was faced with the glittery suit, his first reaction was one of shock.

Smith got over that stunned feeling and soon embraced the suit as just the thing to prove Edward Nygma was no longer that timid morgue assistant. He had become his own man, especially in the first half of Gotham‘s current season, and the new green suit was just the thing to outwardly display that change.

Cory Michael Smith says his first dress rehearsal in that green suit was “a cool day,” though he felt something was still missing.

“Next up should be the cane, in my opinion,” says the Gotham actor.

Now that Nygma has fully grown into his Riddler identity, Smith says the people of Gotham are going to regret crossing meek and shy Edward.

“It’s his time to declare that he has accepted the role that fate has given him, and he’s going to be a villain, wreak havoc and show people that everyone has underestimated him.”

Move Over, Penguin – Edward Has a New Bestie

The friendship between Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) and Nygma ended badly, to say the least, but, as TV Guide reports, Edward isn’t letting that hold him back. After shooting Oswald, a.k.a. Penguin, and leaving him for dead, the newly transformed Gotham villain is about to find himself a new buddy.

Cory shares that this sounds simpler than it will be on the series, as the Gotham villain finds most people beneath him, intellectually speaking. Smith says Nygma’s deal-breaker is that his new BFF must have a talent for decoding his character’s riddles.

“The affection he has for tricks and plans and puzzles, it’s his way of applying order to what he sees as a disordered universe,” says Gotham executive producer John Stephens.

The Gotham actor reveals that Edward’s criteria for a new best friend will lead him to form an unlikely friendship with Lucius Fox (Chris Chalk). Apparently, Lucius is the only one in Gotham on the same intellectual level as Nygma. Even as Edward evolves into Riddler, Cory says his Gotham character will bond with Lucius.

As might be expected, however, this friendship won’t be long lasting. Once Lucius finds out about Edward’s alter ego and his passion for spreading chaos, the Wayne Enterprises genius will be lucky to escape without earning Riddler’s wrath.

Looking on from a distance, Cory hopes that viewers will be able to recognize that all of this is a part of a journey for Edward Nygma, an attempt to make sense of a world that seems to have cast him as the outsider.

“He started to feel like the world was deciding for him that it wasn’t what he deserved or what he’s going to have,” Smith says.

Gotham returns on Monday, April 24 on Fox.

[Featured Image by Fox]