Gotham Season 2 has been advertised as “The Rise of the Villains,” but it looks as if it will be billionaire industrialist Theo Galavan (played by James Frain) that will be pulling the strings behind the chaos many of them are causing in the city. Now we have a sense of what he has in mind thanks to this new clip introducing the season's main antagonist. Check it out!
This Gotham clip kicks off with six Arkham Asylum inmates strapped to dollies in a posh penthouse, no doubt so they don’t get violent. The prisoners include Jim Gordon’s ex-fiancee Barbara Kean, presumed future Joker Jerome and psychotic ex-businessman Richard Sionis. Theo arrives with his sister Tabitha, who we’ve seen in recent previews have a hand in breaking them individuals of the mental institution. Rather than divulge who he is, Theo focuses on the criminals before him, noting he sees “brilliance, charisma and power.” He goes on to point out that with the villains' unique skill sets and ability to work together, people would tremble before them. Barbara doesn’t agree with his assessment of her, saying she simply has issues, but he counters by pointing out that with the qualities she does have (ferocity, beauty and desire), she can have anything she wants.
Previous reports have revealed that Theo’s family has a deep history with Gotham City, and upon his return, he will pretend to be its savior in order to remake the city as he sees fit. Executive producer Danny Cannon has also said that Theo is the key to the “origins of a very famous DC villain.” There have been comparisons online noting Theo using these villains as his own Suicide Squad, i.e. a team of criminals brought together by powerful individuals to do their bidding. However, while the Suicide Squad is used by the US government for dangerous black ops missions, this team of baddies will be used to cause destruction in Gotham City, thus forcing the gritty metropolis to be rebuilt from the ground up. However, the people Theo has recruited to his cause are among Gotham City’s most dangerous and unpredictable, so he’ll need to take extra precautions to keep them under his thumb.
If you’re looking for a little extra background on what to expect in Gotham Season 2’s first episode, the series also posted this clip last week featuring the first meeting between Barbara and Jerome in Arkham Asylum, giving a taste of what life in that crazy hole is like.
Theo’s plan will be put into motion when Gotham Season 2 premieres on Monday, September 21 on Fox.
