When Gotham returns on Monday, a new villain will be born. We knew Nygma was the Riddler from the beginning but he hasn’t yet introduced himself to the world, until now.
At a special screening of the episode, the cast shared some insight into what’s to come for the rest of the season.
Don’t expect everything to be answered for Nygma just because he’s finally discovered he’s the Riddler. Cory Micheal Smith said, “He’s called himself something but now begins the journey of finding out what that actually means to him.”
Nygma can’t really find himself until he lets go of Oswald. There will be plenty of great moments on Monday’s episode of Nygma trying to come to terms with what he did to Oswald and letting go of his best friend.
One thing you can be certain of is that the Riddler is not interested in running Gotham. Smith repeatedly said that and that he’s on a journey to discover his own identity.
“In a weird way that makes him all the more terrifying because that is unpredictable, he doesn’t even know who is,” said Robin Lord Taylor. “Whereas someone like the Penguin, order, structure, King of Gotham, let’s go.”
Smith has really enjoyed the “intense and severe evolution” his character has gone through.
“I like that it took this long. It feels like he earned this identity,” he said.
One of the highlights of becoming the Riddler for Smith was when he saw the green suit for the first time. He tried on a lot of different suits and most of them were a mute or matte finish but the one they chose was shimmery.
“I was like oh god that’s really green. That’s really bright because in the show all the colors are a bit darker and lower tones. So I was like I’m going to look like a goddamn chandelier walking in the room but it’s really exciting. It feels like the flamboyance that he’s trying to put forward to impress people is captured,” he said.
The biggest effects of Nygma’s transformation will probably be felt by Oswald and you’ll have to wait until Monday to see how that unfolds but Barabara will be using this to her advantage.
According to Erin Richards, Barbara will be using Nygma to become Queen of Gotham. That’s going to put a lot of tension between Barbara and Tabitha, Jessica Lucas said. Tabitha really wants to kill Nygma but Barbara won’t let her. She feels that Barbra has gone a little off the rails and has forgotten about their friendship.
“It’s echoing her brother and that’s exasperating her feelings,” Lucas said.
Tabitha may not be able to count on Barbara but she can count on Butch. Cutting off her hand “will come full circle by the end of the season” and you’ll finally know how she feels.
You don’t get to see too much of Selina in the spring premiere but Camren Bicondova said she is really growing in the latter part of this season.
“I always see her going a certain way and she literally goes the complete opposite so I’ve gotten used to letting her be and go with the flow,” Bicondova said.
Selina is dealing with issues she’s never dealt with before, teenage girl issues.
“Is she in love?” Smith blurted out.
“I think maybe she is and she’s in denial because she doesn’t want to be. By the end of the season she’s going to figure out that she wants something else and I’m excited for everyone to see that,” she said.
The journey has just begun for all of these characters and as Ben McKenzie noted, “I think as Bruce evolves everybody around him evolves.”
Bicondova also noted that everyone knows who these characters become.
“I think that’s what makes Gotham so fun and interesting is that nobody’s seen the journey. So I feel like it’s that cheesy saying of it’s the journey, it’s not the destination,” she said.
Gotham returns, Monday, April 24. Check out the trailer to see what’s in store for all your favorite characters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTcj8I09Bl0&feature=youtu.be