Gotham has already teased some pretty wild reveals for its final season, so it's no surprise another one of Batman's iconic villains could be making an appearance. Yes, finally. Showrunner John Stephens hinted that Gotham may introduce Harley Quinn in Season 5, by way of describing a new character to be found at Jeremiah's hip.
[Jeremiah] has a somewhat deranged girlfriend, who dresses in a multi-colored fashion. I wouldn't describe it as a healthy relationship ... She likes roller skates.
That certainly sounds like Harley Quinn, but is it really the famed clown girlfriend of Batman's most iconic villain? Perhaps the Harley-ness will just be in style alone, since it's largely unknown whether Gotham will even be able to call the character by her given name, or if it'll be forced to do the same song and dance it's done with Jeremiah essentially becoming the Joker but not actually being called Joker. (Something that may also be changing this season.) John Stephens didn't explicitly use her name when talking to crowds at New York Comic Con, which might indicate this Harley won't go by that particular moniker, but will still be similar to the iconic character.
The news comes after years of speculation regarding Harley Quinn's potential presence on Gotham, with cast and crew alike teasing the villainess' arrival for some time now. Star David Mazouz teased a while back that Quinn would appear in the Season 3 finale, though that didn't happen. Earlier in Season 3, John Stephens said the show wanted to introduce a forerunner to Harley Quinn, which means Jeremiah's beau could technically be a character Gotham has already shown. That statement led some to speculate that Barbara Kean will become the character before all is said and done, although actress Erin Richards didn't buy it when we asked her.
Harley Quinn has become a hot commodity as of late, with the character's popularity skyrocketing even higher following Margot Robbie's portrayal in Suicide Squad. The character's potential Gotham arrival is surprising, but also a little expected, given Quinn is also getting an animated series and a couple of appearances in spinoff films. The good news is it sounds like Gotham won't be the sole Batman related franchise of late that completely excludes the character, even if they may not be able to use her name. Fans should be fine with whatever name variation the program creates out of the name "Harleen Frances Quinzel," provided the character still resembles the Harlequin clown everyone loves so dearly.
Gotham is set to return for Season 5 on Fox in 2019. It's one of the many upcoming shows audiences are excited about, although there are a fair few that will be returning long before the final season of the Batman prequel arrives. See what else is coming to television in the meantime with our fall premiere guide.
