¡¡¡Nuevo proyecto de la FOX sobre GOTHAM!!!

[Shelby]

- Stills del 1.05 "Viper":

[Shelby]

- Entrevista con Robin Lord Taylor de "Gotham" (starrymag):

Entrevista con Robin Lord Taylor de "Gotham"
Por starrymag | 8 Octubre, 2014

Q) what was it, though, that first attracted to you either the part or the script when you found out about it?

A) The script, well the role I just auditioned for blindly. It was a fake scene that they wrote together with a fake character named— I wasn’t told the name of the project. It wasn’t until I was going in the night before where my agent sort of gave me the tipoff and was like, “Oh, by the way, it’s a young Penguin and this is the origin story of Batman.” I was like, “Okay.” I didn’t let that— I had already prepared and I just went in and did my thing and it just worked out for once. It was amazing, and then when I read the script, it all just came together in such a brilliant way. The pilot script was one of the best ones that I’ve ever read. In terms of what I really responded to was the fact that this character, though, from all I’d ever seen, these larger than life, incredible performances of the character by Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito, but what was brought to the page was just this humanity and the fact that we’re actually trying to bring some real human pathos to this fantastic character and this fantastic world. That was immediately what I just keyed into.

Q) Was there anybody, other than watching the actors that have played Penguin before, was there anybody else that inspired your portrayal?

A) I was definitely inspired by both Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito. They’re just two just amazing characters and to be connected to them in anyway is just—I’m still wrapping my brain around that, but I would say definitely they’ve been an amazing influence on me and then also just I’d read briefly that when they were considering years ago about in the Chris Nolan series—This may have all been rumor and conjecture. It probably was, but the thought of bringing in a Penguin character and have it be played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, who is one of my idols in terms of actors. I look at him and he’s just been such an inspiration for me in everything that I’ve done. I would say those guys.

Q) How was the presentation of Oswald developed? Were you given a lot of specific direction? Was Bruno Heller asking for emphasis on particular aspects? Anything like that?

A) I said it before. The script itself was just—everything was there. I didn’t feel like I needed very much guidance because just what was on the page was just so clear and I think we just had a mutual understanding of where we wanted the character to go and the fact that the character in the script was present—There was sympathy there and there was humanity there. It was just sort of a matter of just keeping it going in that direction and that’s been one of the most validating things for me is that people are picking up on that. You worry when you play a character like this, you worry about falling into just the trap of it being a two-dimensional, like a Snidely Whiplash type character just doing bad things for the sake of doing bad things, but I’ve been so lucky in this script. People have really been responding to the sympathetic aspect of the character, which I think is just such a new twist on this whole world that we’ve known, that has been around for 75 years, the Batman universe.

Q) As far as the presentation goes, you make Oswald’s very formal way of speaking sound very natural and almost kind of lyrical. Where does that come from for Oswald and for you as an actor?

A) Well, you see for Oswald, he was raised in—though they didn’t have much money, he comes from a somewhat aristocrat background. His family came from Europe and they still—there’s the sense that they had a lot of money there, but then when they fled, all of that sort of went away, but the tradition still remains and I think you’ll definitely see that. Carol Kane is bringing that in spades to her character, and once you see her and her characterization, you really understand why he speaks the way he speaks. It’s where he’s coming from as a person. For me, it’s just, again, it’s finding the relatable in this fantastic character. I love the way it’s written. I love the heightened sort of way that he speaks because it sets him apart from everybody else and it just illustrates, like I said before, where he came from and also what it is about him that is different and there’s a thing that’s just sort off about him.

Q) You’re a part of social media. Are you enjoying that instant fan feedback you’ve been given when the episodes air?

A) I have been. It’s been like a rollercoaster. When we’re watching the show and I’m live Tweeting, I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. I have two computers open, my phone. It’s an intense experience because you want to respond to everybody and you want to—you just want to absorb how people are reacting to your work. It’s just I never thought I would be part of something that would be so immediately—that people would have such an immediate response to and then also on top of that be able to respond in real time. It’s a connection to the audience that you only really find—it’s almost like going back to theater. Because when you’re doing a play and you’re on stage, you feel that energy from people and you can tell when things are landing and you can tell what people are responding to, and then having Twitter there, it’s a very similar experience in a way. Only, in this world I’m actually responding back as opposed to just doing the thing on stage or whatever.

Q) It must be kind of surreal to have people flip out just because you favorited something that they tweeted you. Even that goes a long way on social media.

A) Yes. It really does and I don’t want it to be like—The thing I would hate most is to come off as cynical or anything. I really truly, truly appreciate the feedback. When the news was announced, forgive me if I’ve said this before, when the news was announced that I would be playing the character, there was some negative feedback, which I wasn’t really expecting, but the feedback was stuff like, “He’s too skinny,” and “He’s too tall.” I was like, oh my God, I’ve never heard these things said about me in my entire life. If this is as bad as it gets, I’ll take it, whatever, but yes, I would say like 99.9% of the responses that I’ve been receiving have been so positive. It’s just so validating. You a role that you love so much and then to have people responding to it in that way is just—It’s more than icing on the cake. It is the cake.

Q) We’ve seen some amazing scenes so far in these few episodes and we’ve gotten to see you play so well against Jada Pinkett Smith. Can you talk about some of your favorite scenes to shoot?

A) I would say, well, every chance I get to work with Jada is just an unbelievable experience. I’ve never worked so intimately with a star of her caliber and of her talent. When you come on set, everyone, like on the pilot when we first were interacting, I was really nervous and everyone has misconceptions about people before they meet them and then she was just so open and giving and so committed to the work and there was no ego and it was just open arms. She’s just there and ready to play and that’s an actor’s dream. You want to be with someone who is as committed and as excited about a project as you are. So, yes, every scene with her, and then of course on top of that, the scenes that really, really speak to me personally are the scenes that I have with Carol. I’ve been a fan of Carol Kane, who plays my mom, I’ve been a fan of hers for years and years and years and the connection that we have personally as well as professionally is just really, really dear to my heart. It’s also just those scenes stand out to me because it is a moment where Penguin doesn’t have to be plotting so much. I mean, he is constantly, but he can let his guard down a little bit and it’s just so gratifying to show another side of him and she’s just a brilliant, brilliant actress. You just lose yourself in her eyes when you’re sitting there across the couch from her. It’s really fantastic.

Q) Don’t call him Penguin.

A) Right. That’s right. Totally. Although, it’s a funny thing. I think like as the series goes along as he discovers his own power inside of himself I think he starts to embrace that as instead of being something that he’s been, well it’s always been a name that he’s been called that’s somewhat tortured him his whole life, and then I think he reaches a point where he’s like, “Okay, well if you’re going to call me this, I’m going to embrace it and I’m going to run with it and I’m going to use that and I’m not going to be a powerless person anymore.” It’s almost like facing your fears and embracing the worst thing that’s said about you, and when you do that, that gives you the power. You then own that. I think that’s definitely Penguin’s trajectory.

Q) I wondered if maybe you could talk a little about, just in your eyes, how do you sort of see your character’s relationship with his mother and how has that maybe sort of developed, as far as you can speak, in the episodes you’ve worked on so far?

A) Well, I think they have a remarkably close relationship and I think that she’s been, I think because—I’m going to get into a little bit of the comic book history. He was a bullied kid and he didn’t have friends really and he was alone. He didn’t have peers that he could rely upon when he was young, so I think he found a lot of that in his mother. I feel like that definitely reads in their connection, just their closeness. It’s not so much creepy as it is a very insular, just very close connection that they have. I could end it there. I don’t know. I lost my train of thought, but yes, that’s sort of where that is.

Q) I wanted to find out did you always want to work in this industry while you were growing up or did you have other professions in mind?

A) My little sister is an opera singer and she’s been a singer for her entire life and so it was always very clear from the get go that she was the star of the family, and for myself, I always loved being part of school plays and everything and I kind of had it in my head, I didn’t know that this was something, like a reality really, and for a little bit, I was considering—I always wanted to be involved in something creative, so I thought, oh maybe I’ll be an architect and I went to architecture camp. I quickly learned that I did not want to be an architect. At that point, that was when I was applying to schools and I had always known that Northwestern University was somewhere— I grew up in Iowa. It’s in Chicago. It’s close to where I was from, but it was such an amazing school and I always knew that I wanted to go there, so when I applied, I applied early decision and when you apply, you have to declare a major, and at that point, I didn’t know what the heck I wanted to do. I only knew that the only thing that I ever got any sort of real gratification from was theater, so I just put it down thinking I’ll just change it, I’ll find something else, this is just for application purposes, but it was the best random thing that I’ve ever done because once I found myself in that program it just was everything that I wanted and it really helped me grow not just as an actor, but as a person. It was the best decision I made.

Q) One of the moments I think from the last episode that really stood out was at the end when Oswald is attempting to be a threatening kidnapper on the phone of that college bro and just failing to have the gravitas that makes it seem like he really is the monster he’s been behaving as. Do you see more of that kind of black-comedy tone working its way into the character’s performance and into the show a little bit as we move forward?

A) I would hope so. That’s the thing. When I think about influences for me, like Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito, what I walk away from with their performance is just the sheer glee and fun that they bring to this sadistic person and the show itself is a dark show and it deals with very dark themes, but I love those moments where—Since we’re starting at the beginning of his life, I want to see him—I love those moments where he makes missteps and you watch him grow and develop in front of you. It would be almost a disservice to the character if he just started off right away and knew exactly what he was doing. It’s those little like hiccups and failures that make him I think sympathetic. Well, sympathetic is weird because he’s terrible, but that make him identifiable or that people can identify with and not just a two-dimensional, just bad guy.

Q) We’ve had so many moments in the show so far where you’ve got to go at somebody with a knife or with a bottle. When do you think you’re going to get to kill somebody with an umbrella?

A) I don’t know, but I hope it’s soon. As we go, we develop his relationship with the umbrella, and in my head, I imagine that he befriends someone like Q from James Bond who makes him all the really fun funky umbrella gadgets, but who knows what they have coming down the pipe. I don’t know.

Q) You’re sort of joining a franchise that’s got a real rabid built-in fan base. Right? People on the show, really strict expectations. Are you feeling pressure or are you feeling like no, I can do whatever I want? How are you feeling about sort of joining an already established franchise like this?

A) I would be a robot if I didn’t feel some pressure. This is above and beyond anything I ever expected for my own career. My goals were just to have health insurance. And to not have to wait tables. Then, you find yourself in this world with this just amazingly smart, devoted audience. Of course, I want to fulfill everyone’s expectations and hopefully exceed them, but I’m not nervous only in the sense that I have the best—Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon are just—I feel so, I just trust them and feel so comfortable in their hands and they’re just so smart and they know exactly where this world is going. I don’t feel fear that people will be disappointed. I’m just excited because I really do believe that people will start seeing new things about these characters that have been a part of popular culture for 75 years. It’s just so exciting to be able to illuminate new parts of this personality.

Q) There’s also chatter, good and bad, too, about the expanding universe. The part of Fish Mooney is supposedly sort of new to the show and stuff. How do you answer all that chatter?

A) I don’t know. I guess I can just say just trust that the people that are in charge of this, that the people who are driving this ship, have everyone’s best interest in mind. They want it to make sense to everyone and that’s their ultimate goal is that this is the Gotham City that forms Bruce Wayne and they want to do it in a way that just does so much good service to all of the other iterations that have come before. I’d just say trust in Bruno Heller and he’s a freaking genius.

Q) You’ve talked a lot about humanizing the character and showing the origin story and the humane side of it and where he came from. One thing that I really appreciate about the show, though, is that you guys are not shying away from the sort of violent cruel nature of him. He’s kind of a bad guy like in the first episode when his eyes light up when he’s beating that guy for the first time or the poor guy sitting there fishing. Now, how are you balancing, because that is an important of it, because he is a villain and a fairly bad villain, so how do you balance humanizing him and yet remembering, in a world now where we all think penguins are cute because of Disney, remembering that this is a very bad guy and you also have to portray that side?

A) I would say the way I personally approach it is the fact that, and this is where I identify with the character, not that I was ever bullied to the extent that he was, but we all understand what it means to be different and what it means to be treated like you’re less than another person just based on whatever it may be; the way you look or whatever it is, and that fear of being powerless and just being at the whim of everyone else. The only difference though is that Oswald has very little empathy in terms of—He just refuses to go back to that place of powerlessness. It is not even a conversation that—There’s no conflict in his mind about that, so in terms of becoming powerful and not being walked upon any more, that’s the fuel that drives him to make these terrible decisions, and I think that is somewhat the human aspect of him. I think once you understand where someone has come from and their situation and their life and it does not excuse their horrible, horrible behavior, but it does humanize them and I think that’s definitely what I’m keying into and that’s what we’re trying to portray on the show.

Q) But what you guys have done a good job of doing, though I think maybe when you look back at, I would say even the most terrifying criminals in the history of human beings, what terrifies us most I think is that lack of empathy because most of us have that empathy, but if you can show, even just in your eyes, a little bit that you don’t quite have that empathy, I think that’s terrifying to the audience. Don’t you?

A) Absolutely. I do and I think that’s what keeps everyone from going ballistic on everyone else in the world. It’s the fact that we have, the majority of us have that and to see someone who doesn’t is truly terrifying. But at the same time, where I approach the character, what I understand from reading the comics, the fact that he was bullied and that he was shown no mercy and no empathy when he was younger, that really forms a person. And that’s sort of—I believe that’s where he’s coming from in those situations, but yes, he could definitely use a good psychiatrist. That’s for sure.

http://starrymag.com/?p=4419

- Gotham - NEW Season 1 Preview (DC Entertainment):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9k08GueQlPg

[Shelby]

- Nueva imagen BTS (10-10-14):



(@mrbenmckenzie: Harvey, Alfred and Jim in repose. #gotham #goodguys)




- Descripción oficial del 1.06 "Spirit of the Goat":

1.06 "Spirit of the Goat": UN VILLANO FAMILIAR REGRESA A GOTHAM CITY (27 Oct 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) - Cuando un asesino empieza a apuntar hacia los primogénitos de la élite de Gotham, Bullock se ve forzado a enfrentarse a unos recuerdos traumáticos de un caso casi idéntico en el que trabajó en el pasado. Después, Gordon es enfrentado por sus anteriores decisiones. Estrellas invitadas: Carol Kane como Gertrud Cobblepot, Dan Hedaya como el Detective Dix, Kim Director como Lacey White, Mackenzie Leigh como Liza, Susan Misner como Dr. Marks y Christopher Baker como The Goat/Raymond Earl.


http://www.spoilertv.com/2014/10/gotham ... press.html

[Shelby]

"New York Comic Con" (12 Oct 2014)

IMÁGENES:

Panel:


Photocall:


Press Interviews:




(thanks to @Dan_Grote, @DCComics, @Gotham, @marisaroffman, @NY_Comic_Con, FOX, @SpoilerTV, @gothamonfox, @KatzJonah, @GothamTVPodcast, @StarryMag, @zap2it)

VIDEOS:

- Full Panel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvjwH2pZ1d8

- Gotham: Leslie Thompkins and a Tommy "Hush" Elliot Easter Egg Are Coming - NYCC 2014 (IGN):
http://www.ign.com/videos/2014/10/12/go ... -nycc-2014

- Gotham: Ben McKenzie, Robin Lord Taylor, Erin Richards Interview - NYCC 2014 (IGN):
http://www.ign.com/videos/2014/10/13/go ... -nycc-2014

- Gotham: Donal Logue, Sean Pertwee, Danny Cannon Interview - NYCC 2014 (IGN):
http://www.ign.com/videos/2014/10/13/go ... -nycc-2014

- Ben McKenzie Preview Gotham (TVFanatic):
http://www.tvfanatic.com/videos/ben-mck ... ew-gotham/

- Donal Logue Teases Future of Harvey Bullock (TVFanatic):
http://www.tvfanatic.com/videos/donal-l ... y-bullock/

- Robin Lord Taylor Interview (TVFanatic):
http://www.tvfanatic.com/videos/robin-l ... interview/

- Erin Richards Interview (TVFanatic):
http://www.tvfanatic.com/videos/erin-ri ... interview/

- Danny Cannon Talks Gotham (TVFanatic):
http://www.tvfanatic.com/videos/danny-c ... ks-gotham/

- Gotham's Ben McKenzie at New York Comic Con (The Televixen):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdAFr9KhGrE

- Gotham's Ben McKenzie (NYCC 2014):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEzN-qePR4A

- Gotham Erin Richards at NYCC 2014 (Lynsey Tamborello):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvCKby0gLng

- Gotham Donal Logue at NYCC 2014 (Lynsey Tamborello):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuiqRrXe9aU

- Gotham Ben McKenzie at NYCC 2014 (Lynsey Tamborello):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWg1MXSVT-M

- Gotham Sean Pertwee at NYCC 2014 (Lynsey Tamborello):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7nwIJPQhok

- Gotham's Robin Lord Taylor (Penguin) Interview at NYCC 2014 (Lynsey Tamborello):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVomOdHCMK8

- Gotham's Erin Richards at New York Comic Con (The TeleVixen):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BaW48YiqHg

- NYCC Interviews - Ben McKenzie Gotham’s Jim Gordon (Gotham TVPodcast):
http://gothamtvpodcast.com/gtvp-nycc-go ... -mckenzie/

- NYCC Interviews - Donal Logue Gotham’s Harvey Bullock (Gotham TVPodcast):
http://gothamtvpodcast.com/gtvp-nycc-in ... nal-logue/

- NYCC Interviews - Sean Pertwee Gotham’s Alfred Pennyworth (Gotham TVPodcast):
http://gothamtvpodcast.com/gtvp-nycc-in ... n-pertwee/

- NYCC Interviews - Erin Richards Gotham’s Barbara Kean (Gotham TVPodcast):
http://gothamtvpodcast.com/gtvp-nycc-in ... -richards/

- NYCC Interviews - Danny Cannon Gotham’s Executive Producer (Gotham TVPodcast):
http://gothamtvpodcast.com/gtvp-nycc-in ... ny-cannon/

- NYCC Interviews - Robin Lord Taylor Gotham’s Oswald Cobblepott (Gotham TVPodcast):
http://gothamtvpodcast.com/gtvp-nycc-in ... rd-taylor/

- Gotham Interview: Robin Lord Taylor on Playing Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin (BuddyTV):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FwaE8SMP3g

- Gotham's Robin Lord Taylor at New York Comic Con (The TeleVixen):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxTZOopBw-k

- Gotham's Donal Logue at New York Comic Con 2014 (The TeleVixen):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mv0cpaB4ms

- Robin Lord Taylor, Erin Richards, and Producer Danny Cannon Interview (collider):
http://collider.com/robin-lord-taylor-e ... dLpdyxU.99

INFO:

- Panel de ‘Gotham’ en el NYCC: Cuándo veremos a Victor Zsasz & Harvey Dent (screenrant):

Panel de ‘Gotham’ en el NYCC: Cuándo veremos a Victor Zsasz & Harvey Dent
Por Ben Kendrick 12 Oct 2014

One of the 2014′s most-anticipated shows, Gotham was a potentially risky prospect – with many fans wondering if Fox could pull-off a Gotham City show without Batman. However, premiere ratings were solid, and despite a few mixed feelings about certain aspects of the program, most Bat-lovers (and plenty of TV watchers) have embraced the series – at least for now. While series lead Ben McKenzie (James Gordon) and co-star Donal Logue (Harvey Bullock) are the primary features of the show – supporting players Robin Lord Taylor and Camren Bicondova, as Oswald “Penguin” Cobblepot and Selina “Cat” Kyle respectively, have quickly become fan-favorites.

Now that the foundation has been established, where is showrunner Bruno Heller going to take viewers next? We already know that the Joker is going to be teased (on multiple occasions) and that Two-Face could appear in the not-too-distant future but what else can audiences expect from season 1 of the series (and beyond)?

Ben McKenzie, Donal Logue, Sean Pertwee (Alfred Pennyworth), Robin Lord Taylor, Erin Richards (Barbara Kean), and executive producer Danny Cannon took to the New York Comic-Con 2014 to share new details about what’s coming up on the show – as well as offer attendees a sneak peek at never-before-seen footage.
Panel

- Cannon states that it was essential they make their version of gotham. The villains emerge from that. The showrunners have the luxury of going back in time, which not many people have had.

- McKenzie believes that Gordon has a warrior’s mentality – and won’t give up to hopelessness but the walls are closing in around him. A moral force in an immoral land. Because he’s coming from a different mindset he makes mistakes – he trusts the wrong people, he saves people that come back to bite him. He’s headstrong – and is trying to make his way through it but he stumbles a lot.

- Logue says Bullock has been around for a long time and just wants to make it to the finish line alive and retire but Gordon brings something out in him – because while he’s seen guys like Gordon before, Gordon is the alpha version.

- Taylor says The Penguin’s ability to endear himself to other people and make them play-off each other is his super power. When he auditioned he didn’t know what the project was – it was a fake scene with fake names but he was tipped off the night before. He did his thing, it was one of the easiest auditions he’d ever done. He gives credit to Heller and Cannon for developing a great script – the character was beautifully drawn and it all comes together, with his costume and makeup, like stepping into the skin of The Penguin. It came about in a really natural way – the waddle is actually established in the pilot as an actual injury, so he can play that much more naturally too.

- Pertwee says Alfred is the protector of Master Bruce but that doesn’t mean that he has any sort of parenting skills – and that they get worse. So, as an actor, the hook is trying to find a way for the character to communicate with this troubled and young Bruce Wayne.

- Richards believes Barbara loves Jim very much and wants it work but it’s frustrating and painful that she senses something is happening with him. It’s normal relationship stuff but it’s heightened because it’s Gotham City.

- Cannon said mapping out the first season was a delight – because the Machiavellian world of Penguin was fun to play with (as was writing Gordon attempting to navigate through it). They sat down with DC to figure out which villains would work and which could fit within the timeline.

- McKenzie wants to be faithful to the mythology and the intent of the characters but not try to do an impression of Pat Hingle or Gary Oldman. He just works on the script and plays it through it as he sees it. Taylor said he watched Batman Returns and the Adam West series – and there’s no escaping Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito’s iterations. But he wanted to bring the sheer fun they presented to his version of the character.

- Pertwee believes that the show is special because it explores the psychological element of the characters. Later he went back and watched Sir Michael Caine and other versions of Alfred and was pleased to see that his intertwined with the other ones – especially as “the common man” amidst this uncommon hero.

- Logue says he doesn’t feel encumbered by other versions of Bullock – and he won’t live up to them. He’s having fun creating his own iteration of the character and teases that Gordon has time to grow a mustache and Bullock has time to put on some weight.

- Richards read “Year One” and watched the Burton films but is enjoying using her character to bring out facets of the other characters. Barbara shows a different side of Gordon – when he’s at home and not in Detective mode. In Barbara she gets to play a strong and real female character – not just a shallow and one-dimensional girlfriend.

- McKenzie claims the cool thing about Gotham is that it starts out with Gordon making the morally right decision (not to kill Cobblepot) but in Gotham the right decision might be the wrong one – and Gordon is responsible for the creation of The Penguin.

- Taylor states that Gotham is Coblepot’s home and his entire identity and his ambitions are tied up in the city – for him to fulfill his dreams, he has to be there. Cannon says The Penguin’s rise to fame and power is the major focus of season 1 – and could lead to a face-off with his former boss, Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett Smith).

- Pertwee asserts that Alfred is actually an enabler – their relationship is about learning to communicate and an intrinsic part of Bruce Wayne’s journey to don the cape and cowl. Cannon claims that this Alfred is badass and it becomes clear why he was hired by one of the richest men in the world to guard his son.

- Richards says that Renee Montoya (Victoria Cartagena) is one of Barbara’s deep dark secrets and viewers will learn more about that history in the coming weeks – and that it will affect her relationship with Gordon. She believes that Montoya is definitely trying to look out for Barbara’s best interest.

- Cannon says they are many seasons away from Bruce choosing the Bat. The show is about Gordon and the city – what’s hidden under Wayne Manor will be kept secret for a while longer.

- Responding to a question of whether or not Harley Quinn could appear, Cannon claims that he wants to see all of the villains but since some of them are Bruce’s age, not everyone can be included. McKenzie says that Gordon and Alfred both see something in Bruce and his potential to resurrect the city but the villains aren’t very aware of him (yet). They’re too busy fighting each other. Though, Selina Kyle and Bruce will begin interacting more – in the near future. Cannon outright states that episode 7 will feature Victor Zsasz and episode 9 will feature Harvey Dent.

- Cannon says that one man’s dump is another man’s paradise. They looked at vintage New York City and said – what if this place got worse instead of better? He claims the show isn’t set in a specific time (though it does happen in the past – more 80s and 90s than present). It’s an amalgamation of inspirations.

- Cannon believes that Nolan’s trilogy is a masterpiece – and it informed the creation of their Gotham. Nolan changed comic book movies for the better because the emotion and pain is real. However, the show is not connected to the films in any way.

- Responding to whether we’ll see The Court of Owls, Cannon says that if they get a season 2, there’s no end to what we might see. He also says not to think about the endpoint (Bruce becoming Batman). He asks viewers to “revel in the now” but teases that in episode 8, there’s a moment where Bruce says to Alfred “I’m angry all the time. Will that ever stop?” Alfred says, “I don’t know.” And Bruce asks, “Will you teach me to fight?”

- After being asked why Gordon wouldn’t see Bruce Wayne’s maturation and suspect he’s Batman, when that time arrives, McKenzie says that in this version of the story, it might not be much of a surprise to Gordon that Bruce Wayne becomes Batman because they have an established and deep bond.


http://screenrant.com/gotham-tv-show-pr ... tor-zsasz/

- NYCC: El equipo de Gotham habla sobre los villanos, el viaje de Bruce hacia Batman, y Más (IGN):

El equipo de Gotham habla sobre los villanos, el viaje de Bruce hacia Batman, y Más
Por Scott Collura 12 Oct 2014

The cast of FOX’s new DC series Gotham swung into New York Comic-Con today to preview what’s to come in that filthy city of The Bat that we all love so much.

IGN’s own Caped Crusader Eric Goldman moderated the panel, which featured Ben McKenzie (Gordon), Donal Logue (Bullock), Robin Lord Taylor (Cobblepot/Penguin), Erin Richards (Barbara), Sean Pertwee (Alfred), and executive producer Danny Cannon.

Things began with a preview of the next episode, which starts where the last left off: With Cobblepot showing up at Barbara’s apartment, much to a shocked Gordon’s dismay. “You must be Barbara,” he says. “Hello, James old friend.” He explains that he’s an old friend, and quickly ingratiates himself with Barbara in that creepy, Penguin way. And Gordon goes along with the lie… “He’s a work friend.” Cut to the alleyway outside, and Gordon has Cobblepot up against a wall. “I told you never come back here. Falcone will kill us both! I should kill you.” But you won’t, says Cobblepot, because you’re a good man and nobody else trusts you but me. “I can be your secret agent,” he tells Gordon. “There’s a war coming!” But what war, Gordon asks? Cobblepot implies that it all leads to Arkham…

“Obviously Jim has been lying to everyone, including his partner, Carmine Falcone, Fish Mooney,” said McKenzie. “And those walls will keep tightening around him. One of the interesting things is that the pilot starts off with Gordon doing the morally correct thing, not killing Cobblepot, but in Gotham the morally correct thing is not always the right thing. He effectively created the Penguin [by doing that]. … I think he’s feeling surrounded, because he is surrounded by people like Oswald as well as people who aren’t on the same mission, which is where Harvey [Bullock] starts off. … But he will never give in to hopelessness.”

Another part of that opening scene for the next episode involved a mysterious man approaching a politician. “I’m one of your constituents,” he says as he begins to fiddle with a metallic tube in his hands. “I want to show you something.” The thing looks like a periscope, and he tells the politician’s assistant to look in the end of it… which of course takes the guy’s eye out and kills him. The man pursues the fleeing politician, cornering him and raising the device again, saying, “Honestly sir, I really did vote for you…” And then KLANG!

Regarding who this new threat might be, Cannon would only say, “When the lunatics run the asylum, the strongest lunatic will win.” It’s such a corrupt town, he added, and the villains that will emerge will always surprise us.

Speaking of villains, the topic of upcoming villains did come up and while the executive producer was pretty tightlipped, he did say he’s focusing on Victor Zsasz and Harvey Dent for now, who are both coming to the show. But when a fan asked about whether or not we’ll see Harley Quinn eventually, Cannon dodged the question at first but finally said, “We’ll get there.”

The Court of Owls also came up: “We are sneaking in a few things in Season 1,” Cannon confirmed. “And if FOX lets us have a Season 2, there’s no end to what you will see from them.”

And then there’s that comedian that we saw in Fish Mooney’s club. Is that the Killing Joke Joker before his transformation, a fan asked? “I don’t know!” laughed Cannon. But he did hint that “we’re going way, way back” with him and “I don’t think he’d be telling jokes yet.” Hmmmm…

Cannon also said that setting the show in Batman’s past was a luxury, and something that not many people had done before to this degree. “We had to make Gotham our own,” he said. “That’s the only way you can be true to the material. But we were influenced by everything that had come before.”

That applies to characters like Gordon and Bullock of course, who have been portrayed not just on the page but also on screen and in animation before. For Logue, he did know his character from Batman: The Animated Series, since his kids would watch it all the time.

“I think that he’s been around for a while and became very cynical,” he said of his take on the detective. “When we meet him he just wants to stuff his pockets and get to the finish line.” He’s seen a hundred Gordons come and go, he added, but his new partner is so strong that it will take someone like that to reawaken his good side.

As for Taylor, who by the way the Comic-Con crowd loved and cheered, he said that while Cobblepot doesn’t really have any superpowers, he does see the character as having a very unique talent. “Even though there is no real supernatural element to this world,” he said. “I think if he did have a superpower, it would be the fact that he can endear himself to people and then play people off of people and emerge triumphant above them all.”

Pertwee will be offering up a more modern interpretation of the loyal butler Alfred, one that apparently is a “bada$$” (those are Cannon’s words). It also sounds like he will be giving young Bruce some of his earliest fight training… but that doesn’t mean Alfred knows much about how to actually raise the kid.

“Because he is a valet and the protector of Bruce doesn’t mean he has any particularly wonderful parenting skills, as you can see,” said Pertwee. “And they get worse. So for me as an actor, it was basically about trying to find a hook, a way to communicate with this young man.”

Richards, who will eventually be Mrs. Gordon according to Batman history (and mother of Batgirl!), said that she sees her and Gordon’s dynamic as being based in the real world despite the fantastic setting of the show.

“With her relationship with Jim she obviously loves him so much and she really wants it to work, but she can already sense that something’s not right,” she said. “And it’s really painful for her. … She’s just going through normal relationship stuff, except everything is heightened because they’re in Gotham.”

A fan asked who everyone’s favorite superhero was growing up, and while there were lots of Batmans, a Green Lantern and a Spider-Man, the best had to be Taylor’s:

“Michael Jackson,” he grinned.

http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/10/12/ ... n-and-more?

- Gotham adelanta un compromometido Alfred, Harvey Dent y un bigore 'ganado' para Jim Gordon (zap2it):

Gotham adelanta un compromometido Alfred, Harvey Dent y un bigore 'ganado' para Jim Gordon
por Kiley Thompson 12 Oct, 2014

The cast and producers of "Gotham" made a big splash Sunday (Oct. 12) at New York Comic Con -- the first event since the highly-anticipated show started airing. And what a place to do it. It's Batman's origin story, after all.

In a packed-to-capacity panel, Ben McKenzie, Donal Logue, Sean Pertwee (Alfred Pennyworth), Robin Lord Taylor, Erin Richards (Barbara Kean), and executive producer Danny Cannon took to the stage to reveal a nice chunk of what's coming up this season, especially in episodes 7, 8, and 9, and talked through some of their processes as they tackle such a big mythology. They also treated the fans to a sneak peek clip from the episode airing Monday (Oct. 13) entitled "Arkham."

Teasery tidbits from the panel and the press room:

Alfred is going to be a force to be reckoned with as the season progresses; there is no old butler in this story. Cannon teased that "in episode 8, there's a moment where Bruce says to [Alfred], 'I'm angry all the time. Will that ever stop?', and he says, 'I don't know.' And [Bruce] says, "Will you teach me to fight?' and there's a long pause ... you start to realize why he's a keeper of the gate and why he was hired to by one of the richest men in the world to look after his own son -- because he's a badass."

Cannon said that episode 7 will feature Victor Zsasz and episode 9 will feature Harvey Dent. Be sure the DVRs are ready.

What about the name of "Fish" Mooney when, well, penguins eat fish? Cannon replied "a Machiavellian rise to the top is something we explore very much and there are very many casualties."

Both McKenzie and Logue spoke of their intentions to build onto the mythology, and since the focus of the show is on Gordon and the city, creating this new story is special. "We're free to interpret the story as we see fit," said McKenzie. "Inventing it is a real thrill."

When asked when he was going to start growing the iconic Gordon mustache, McKenzie said "the mustache needs to be earned. I would think we're a long ways off from the mustache ... I mean, I can grow a mustache. But not yet."


http://www.zap2it.com/blogs/gotham_jim_ ... 14-2014-10

- Ben McKenzie habla sobre Jim Gordon y las próximas alianzas de Gotham de Harvey Dent (denofgeek):

Ben McKenzie habla sobre Jim Gordon y las próximas alianzas de Gotham de Harvey Dent
por David Crow 12/10/2014 2:43PM

Ever since it was announced that Gotham would focus on Jim Gordon’s early days as a crime-buster with a distaste for corruption in the Gotham City Police Department, it has long been speculated when and how we’ll see Harvey Dent appear in the series. In fact, Gotham executive producer Danny Cannon told me at San Diego Comic-Con this year that he and showrunner Bruno Heller had been discussing whether or not to make Harvey Dent a law student in the first season.

Well, last week we got our answer when the series and the Fox announced Nicholas D'Agosto would be playing the crusading Harvey Dent, now an assistant district attorney in Gotham’s equally corrupt DA’s Office.

So, when I had the chance to sit down with Danny Cannon this weekend for New York Comic-Con, and Ben McKenzie a little later, I wanted to see what direction they had taken for Gotham City’s “white knight.”

“In episode nine, we’re meeting him,” Cannon told me. “What’s great about him is he’s another idealistic assistant DA who understands, just like Jim does, how corrupt this place is. There’s no hint yet about a dark side to this guy. It’s much more about is he going to help Jim through this world or are they actually going to be at odds? Are they two north magnets? That’s what we’re going to explore.”

Cannon remained relatively coy about how exactly this relationship between the Gotham protagonist and the new Harvey on the series would play out, but Jim Gordon star Ben McKenzie talked directly about how the two will form an alliance in the final episodes of the first season.

“They’re learning from each other,” McKenzie said about Harvey. “And we just started shooting that stuff. It’s cool, because Harvey’s just an assistant district attorney at this stage of our story, and much more idealistic than later versions of him. Yeah, so they form a team of sorts.”

Obviously well early in the Batman mythos, it still seems like two-thirds of the legendary triumvirate glimpsed in Batman: The Long Halloween and, of course, The Dark Knight will be in place long before the first cape and cowl is donned.

http://www.denofgeek.us/tv/gotham/24013 ... kk.twitter

- Panel de 'Gotham' en la NYCC Panel adelanta a Harvey Dent y Victor Zsasz (movieweb):

Panel de 'Gotham' en la NYCC Panel adelanta a Harvey Dent y Victor Zsasz
Por Brian Gallagher 13 Oct, 2014

Gotham stars Ben McKenzie (James Gordon), Donal Logue (Harvey Bullock), Sean Pertwee (Alfred Pennyworth), Robin Taylor (Oswald Cobblepot), Erin Richards (Barbara Kean), and executive producer Danny Cannon took to the stage at New York Comic-Con earlier today where they revealed new details about what fans can expect throughout Season 1 of the new series.

Earlier this month, the show cast Nicholas D'Agosto as Gotham District Attorney Harvey Dent, a.k.a. Two-Face, with executive producer Danny Cannon revealing that he will make his debut in the show's ninth episode, while Victor Zsasz, who was shown in a preview released last month, will show up in the seventh episode. When asked if Harley Quinn will ever appear on the show, the executive producer revealed he eventually wants to see all of the Batman villains on the show, but some can't be included because of how young Bruce is in the show. He added that the show is several seasons away from revealing Bruce Wayne as Batman, and what's hidden underneath Wayne Manor will continue to be a secret for quite some time.

Many fans have wondered if there is a specific time period that Gotham is set in. Danny Cannon hinted that it may be set in the 80s or 90s, but he wouldn't specify a certain time period. When asked if the Court of Owls may make an appearance, the executive producer teased that anything will be possible if they're picked up for Season 2.

When asked about his version of James Gordon, Ben McKenzie believes that Gordon has "a warrior's mentality" and that, because he's coming from a different mind set than other Gotham cops, he makes mistakes and trusts the wrong people, but he keeps pushing on to make Gotham a better place. He also added that he wants to be faithful to the previous interpretations of James Gordon in the past, from actors such as Gary Oldman, but he isn't trying to imitate those previous incarnations.

Donal Logue revealed that Harvey Bulllock just wants to make it to his retirement alive and in one piece, but partnering with Gordon brings something out in him. He described Gordon as the "alpha version" of straight-laced cops he's met before.

While Robin Taylor's Oswald Cobblepot, the future Penguin, doesn't have any traditional "super powers," the actor believes that his ability to endear himself to people and make them play against each other is his true gift. He also credited series creator Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon for creating a great pilot script and that his audition was easier than most since his character was so well-developed on the page. The actor added that he watched previous versions of The Penguin character in the original Batman TV series and the 1992 movie Batman Returns. While he isn't trying to imitate those performances, the actor added he is trying bring the sheer amount of fun portrayed by this actors to his performance. The actor also added that Oswald's Machiavellian rise is a major focus of Season 1, teasing his arc may lead to a showdown with his former boss, Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett Smith)

As we've seen in the first few episodes, Sean Pertwee's Alfred Pennyworth doesn't exactly have the greatest set of parenting skills, since he is now forced to raise young Bruce Wayne (David Mazouz) following the deaths of his parents. The actor revealed that his parenting gets worse as the season progresses, and that he tries to find ways to communicate with young Bruce.

Erin Richards added that her character, Gordon's fiancee Barbara Kean, brings out a different side to Gordon that he doesn't show while on the job. The actress added that she enjoys playing a real female character, not just a one-dimensional lover or wife. She also said that her relationship with Montoya (Victoria Cartagena) is one of Barbara's deep dark secrets, and that fans will learn more about this past relationship in the next few weeks.

In an interview with IGN after the NYCC panel, Danny Cannon confirmed that DC characters Tommy "Hush" Elliot and Leslie Thompkins will be featured in upcoming episodes, with casting announcements set to be made sometime this week. When asked how Leslie Thompkins will fit into the show, Danny Cannon had this to say.

"Without giving too much away, Jim Gordon gets to meet her through strange circumstances and... oh my God, I'm giving it away. It's a very tough time in Jim's life, and he meets Leslie Thompkins."

Could this mean that Jim Gordon and his fiancee Barbara Kean are going to split up? We'll have to wait and see. Gotham returns with its fourth episode, "Arkham" on Monday, October 13 at 8 PM ET on Fox.

http://www.movieweb.com/gotham-tv-show- ... arvey-dent

- NY Comic Con: 'Gotham' Adelanta el elenco de nuevos vilanos, un Alfred "de armas tomar" y el destino de Fish Mooney (THR):

NY Comic Con: 'Gotham' Adelanta el elenco de nuevos vilanos, un Alfred "de armas tomar" y el destino de Fish Mooney
Por Ashley Lee 13/10/2014 5:00 AM PST

The Batman prequel series kicked off its New York Comic Con panel on Sunday with opening scenes from Monday night's episode, featuring a spotlight on the character who eventually becomes Penguin.

"I told you there's a war coming, Jim — there will be so many deaths, so many," Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) tells Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) at the beginning of Monday night's episode of Gotham. "You're a good man, you may very well be the last good man in Gotham. ... As you know, war is just politics by other means. And isn't politics just money talking?" What is he talking about? Says Cobblepot: "Arkham, of course."

It's an interaction that inferred Jim's trust in Oswald. "If [Oswald] had a superpower, it would be that he's able to endear himself to a lot of people," Taylor explained of his villain-to-be. "He works his way into situations, and then he's able to play people off of people and emerge triumphantly between them." In response to speculation of whether Penguin (an animal that eats fish) will end up devouring Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett Smith) showrunner Danny Cannon said, "A Machiavellian rise to the top is something we explore very much and there are very many causalities and collateral damage."

The clip also introduced a new villain with a telescope-like weapon that gauges out the eye of whoever looks through it. "When the lunatics run the asylum, the strongest lunatic will win — it's such a corrupt town," said Cannon after the sneak peek. "The villains that will immerse from the ooze will always surprise us."

Star McKenzie reassured of his Jim Gordon, "He is surrounded by proper villains. ... At the same time, he has this warrior's mentality — the same things that kick him down are the same things that pick him up. He will never give into hopelessness."

While fans were anxious to see more of Bruce Wayne (David Mazouz) in the series, Cannon noted that they're many seasons away from focusing on the young Batman. "We're gonna concentrate much more on how Jim and Alfred are gonna father him ... What's hidden under Wayne manor is gonna be kept secret for just a little while longer." However, he did confirm that Bruce's first interaction with Selina Kyle is coming ahead.

In the meantime, the show will continue to introduce familiar villains. While Cannon couldn't confirm a Harley Quinn appearance or whether the red-suited comedian is indeed the Joker, the showrunner did say that Victor Zsasz will arrive in episode seven and Harvey Dent in episode nine. "Season two, if Fox lets us, there's no end of what we would see," said Cannon.

Also, Sean Pertwee loves bringing a new version of notorious butler Alfred Pennyworth to the screen. "He's the protector of young master Bruce, but it doesn't mean he has any particular parenting skills — and it gets worse!"

Cannon also teased of Alfred, "You start to realize why he's such a great keeper of the gate and was hired by one of the richest men in the world to protect his son — because he's a badass."

And in episode eight, Bruce Wayne will approach Alfred: "I'm angry all the time — will it ever stop?" When Alfred responds, "I don't know," Bruce will ask, "Will you teach me how to fight?"

The other cast members also reflected on their characters.

Donal Logue noted that his Harvey Bullock "had been around for a while and he became very cynical, and I think when you meet him, he basically wants to stuff his pockets, retired and be alive." But after meeting Gordon, how is "stronger, he has moral fibers to deep, it took someone like Jim Gordon to wake up Harvey Bullock."

And Erin Richards noted of her Barbara Keen, "She obviously loves him so much and she really wants it to work, but she can already sense that something's not right. ... She's just going through normal relationship stuff, but everything's heightened when you're in Gotham."

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/n ... ast-740197?

- NYCC: "Gotham" Mina el pasado de la ciudad, construye hacia el futuro de Batman (CBR):

NYCC: "Gotham" Mina el pasado de la ciudad, construye hacia el futuro de Batman
Por Steve Sunu, 13 Oct 2014

DC Entertainment has a number of television series on the air for the 2014-2015 season, and with the pre-Batman "Gotham" about to air its fourth episode ("Arkham") in the United States, the series brought a special panel to New York Comic Con that included executive producer Danny Cannon, and stars Ben McKenzie (Jim Gordon), Donal Logue (Harvey Bullock), Robin Lord Taylor (Oswald Cobblepot), Sean Pertwee (Alfred Pennyworth) and Erin Richards (Barbara Kean). After sharing the opening scene from tonight's episode, the panel answered a number of questions about the freshman series.

The clip picked up where the last episode left off, with Oswald Cobblepot standing at Jim Gordon and Barbara Kean's door. While the bulk of the cold open dealt with how Gordon would deal with the future Bat-villain's return to Gotham, the second half introduced a mysterious man with a special cylindrical weapon that extends a stiletto blade from one of the ends, which he uses to kill a Gotham City councilman and his bodyguard.

Once the clip wrapped, Cannon discussed the violent sequence, the mysterious man and his weapon.

"It's another way that when -- when the lunatics run the asylum, the strongest one will win," said Cannon, referring to the popular phrase rather than Arkham Asylum. "It's such a corrupt town. The villains that will emerge from the ooze will always surprise us, I believe."

Cannon said he and showrunner Bruno Heller had the luxury of going back in time for "Gotham," and while they "had to make it our own," they were influenced enormously by everything that's come before. "We were making our own romantic poem to this canon of work."

McKenzie's Gordon is very quickly starting to feel the corruption of the city, with the actor saying that he's "feeling surrounded by proper villains like Oswald as well as people who just aren't on the same mission that he is." Gordon has a "warrior's mentality." "He will never give over to hopelessness," said McKenzie.

Bullock presumably didn't start out walking precariously along the moral line, with Logue saying that the character became "very cynical." "When you meet him, he wants to stuff his pockets with whatever he can and get to the finish line," the actor explained. "He's seen 100 of them come and go, but Jim Gordon is the best of them. It took someone like Jim Gordon to wake that up in Harvey Bullock and bring him back to the good side."

"Gotham's" future Penguin got a huge round of applause as Taylor discussed playing the character. "Even though there's no supernatural elements to this work... if he did have a superpower, it would be the fact that he is able to endear himself to a lot of people. That's how he works his way into these situations and is able to play people off of people and emerge triumphant between them."

Alfred is one of the major mainstays of the Batman universe, and Pertwee noted that the character's oath to defend Bruce Wayne is something he takes very seriously. "He doesn't have such wonderful parenting skills, as you'll see -- and they get worse! It was about finding a hook how he communicates with this young man who's going through a very stressful period in his life."

Richards said that when it comes to Barbara Kean's relationship with Jim, her character can already sense that something isn't right. "It's frustrating and also quite painful for her," she said. "I think it's hard for her to figure out what's going on in his head... She's just going through normal relationship stuff, but everything is heightened because we're in Gotham."

With "Gotham" a long way away from getting to even the earliest days of Batman, Cannon said mapping out the first season was "a delight," because the Machiavellian world of Penguin really gets the journey going. "To watch Gordon walk his way through that past was interesting," said Cannon. "We sat down with DC and said, 'Let's talk about the villains who may or may not have origin stories.' That's a meeting [where] you pinch yourself and say, 'I can't believe this is my job.'"

In terms of influence, McKenzie said he always wants to be faithful to the mythology and to the intent of the character "but absolutely not try to do a terrible impression of all the other actors that have played my part." Taylor watched "Batman Returns" many times while he was growing up, as well as the Adam West series. "There's no escaping Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito's incredible characterizations," he said. "When I walk away from this, I want to bring the sheer fun they brought to the character. That's something that I really want to bring to this character as well. They had the time of their life and I'm having the time of my life."

Pertwee's is a dramatic reinterpretation of Alfred, and the actor said that he tried to avoid reading or watching previous films "for a while." And while he was pleased to see that the paths crossed, he is "quite keen" on making sure Alfred represented the common man.

Logue, bringing his character to live-action life for the first time, said he "didn't feel encumbered" thanks to not having previous performances to be compared against. He'd heard the animated versions many times while his kids watched "Batman: The Animated Series" on road trips, however. "I'd heard the Harvey Bullock animated [character] coming through the speaker system while I was driving. But I knew for me, personally, that that approach wouldn't have been good. I couldn't have done that job. We're having fun creating these characters."

Richards said she has always been a massive fan of Batman. "Barbara doesn't show up in there very often. I read 'Year One,' and researched that a little bit," she said. "I think for me and Jada Pinkett Smith -- we and Bruno get to use our characters to bring out different facets in [the other] characters. Especially Ben -- with Barbara, we get to show a different side of [Jim Gordon]. That's the really enjoyable part, that element that I get to bring out the new things in [Jim] and find fun things to play with."

Oswald showing up on Barbara and Jim's doorstep brings a huge wrinkle into the young detective's life. "He's portrayed himself as killing Cobblepot, and obviously, Cobblepot is back," McKenzie said. "The noose will continue to tighten around his neck. He has to figure out how to save his own neck, and more secrets will arise. But one of the things that I think is brilliant about Bruno -- he starts the whole pilot off with Jim making the morally correct choice not to kill Oswald… Gordon is effectively responsible for Penguin, eventually.

"He has to learn that he can't always do the right thing," McKenzie continued. "That'll be fun to play."

Cobblepot is now a marked man, with Taylor explaining that he comes back to Gotham because "he knows nothing else." "His whole identity is wrapped in this city and in this environment. He needs to come back and in order for him to fulfill his dreams of what he wants with his life. He needs to be there."

Cannon didn't want to give away very much about the series, but Cobblepot's Machiavellian rise to the top is something the team plans to explore during the course of the first season.

Alfred suddenly finds himself with a son in Bruce Wayne, and both are incredibly traumatized by the events which lead to this new relationship. "There's a tremendous sense of love and loyalty explored," said Pertwee. "The relationship develops, but at a natural pace. They find a hook of communicating. It's the journey of the boy that turns into a man that dons the cowl." Pertwee praised David Mazouz, who plays Bruce Wayne, as "brilliant."

Richards said that Barbara is an "equal part" of a triangle, and the character has some deep dark secrets she's hiding from Gordon. "[Renee] Montoya is one of those," said Richards. "You find out about their history and how that's going to affect her and Jim. Montoya's just looking out for me."

In terms of the massive cast, Logue said "Alfred goes off" from what they've been doing lately, and the rest of the cast get to interact with one another -- though no more details were given. "We start to realize why he's such a great keeper of the gate," said Cannon. "It's because he's a badass."

The panel shifted into Q&A mode, and Cannon kicked things off by saying that it's some time away from bringing Bruce to the point where he's ready to explore what's hidden under Wayne Manor.

The question of whether we'll eventually see a young Harley Quinn came up, and Cannon was somewhat evasive. "There are other characters we will see," he said. "Some of them are Bruce's age, so it's hard. But episode seven, look out for Victor Zsasz. Episode nine, look out for Harvey Dent."

Taylor, discussing the audition process, said that when he auditioned, he didn't know what the project was. "I knew nothing. It was a great scene. I just went in and prepared that. The night before, I got the tip off -- I had prepared my thing… and it was remarkably one of the easiest audition processes I've ever had... I got the call the next day saying they were sending me off to Los Angeles to test.

"The character was so beautifully drawn and perfectly put together," Taylor continued. "On top of it, I go in and get my hair dyed black, get a fake nose -- all of that comes together, and it's like stepping into the skin of the character. I haven't felt like I'm struggling to fit into this. It just came about in a natural way. The waddle… it's great that it's a real injury we establish in the pilot. As an actor, that's something you can play as realistically as possible."

Cannon said that as the show was in development, they looked to New York City in the '70s and '80s. "It was that period of time in New York, before it got gentrified. It was a great mixed cultural time... We went back into that place and said, 'What if it just got worse or better from that point on?' One man's dump is another man's paradise. For me, Gotham was the New York I always wanted to visit... Our Gotham is an incredibly liberal and modern-thinking place. Nobody is sensitive. We go with that, and hopefully we keep going."

Richards said she is "so incredibly proud to be a part of this project," and believes television is leading the way with strong female characters "that are multi-layered. No longer are we in these boxes where we're either strong or weak. I get to be this strong, incredible woman, but also emotional and desperate."

"Gotham" was informed by Nolan's trilogy in that the director "changed comic book movies for the better," according to Cannon. "The pain that people go through is real. We feel it and we experience it. I believe that's the way to go with these comic books."

In terms of the dynamic between Bruce Wayne and each of the villains, "Right now, he's just a 12-year-old kid," said McKenzie. "I think Alfred and Jim see in Bruce an extraordinarily intelligent, sensitive, smart young man who has the potential to resurrect the city and keep it from falling apart. The villains -- I don't know if they're particularly focused on him."

Logue's "Sons of Anarchy" history was brought up -- "I'm getting applauded for killing a hooker" -- and he discussed how he went from that character to Harvey Bullock, crediting the creative forces behind the show with providing strong material.

McKenzie agreed with Logue, saying Heller wrote the part of Jim with McKenzie in mind. "He's just come back from the front lines, and he's just come back to the city to take on his father's legacy," he said. "He's a moral force finding himself in an immoral land trying to bring justice to a lawless place. Because he comes from a completely different mindset, he makes a lot of mistakes. He makes a lot of decisions that are morally correct -- like saving Oswald's life -- that will come back and bite him in the ass. That's what's beautiful; he stumbles through it. He's a young, pretty bullish, forceful police detective, who's just going to punch and kick his way through Gotham. He's so headstrong that he makes a lot of dumb decisions."

"Does it really matter?" Cannon responded to a question regarding the time period "Gotham" takes place in. "What year is a Western? I don't know. I think you'll have to look at Nolan's films and say, 'When is that set?' We're 18 years before that... [Bruno and I] talked about the Dickensian London and Grimm's fairy tales -- it was our poem to New York. The rock and roll books I looked at for costumes -- that was ageless, too. We've got to put rock and roll into 1970s Dickensian New York."

Cannon also addressed concerns about the series ending with Bruce Wayne donning the cape and cowl. "Let's not think about the end." There's a great moment where Bruce says, "I'm angry all the time, will that ever stop?" Alfred says, "I don't know." Bruce says, "Will you teach me to fight," and there's a long pause.

In terms of the Joker teases, Cannon said they were having "a lot of secret fun with it." "We're going to go way, way back -- I will say that. I don't think he would be telling jokes."

Before the panel wrapped, McKenzie addressed a question from a fan about the intelligence level of Jim Gordon -- especially given that the "Gotham" version of Gordon will have known Bruce Wayne since the night of his parents' death. As a relatively intelligent man -- a police detective, even -- wouldn't Gordon have a good idea who's under Batman's cape and cowl down the line?

"I think you hit on it -- Jim is 'supposedly' very intelligent," said McKenzie, jokingly. "I think both Alfred and Jim see this dark -- Danny was talking about Bruce in episode 8, asking Alfred if he'll teach him how to fight. Both Alfred and Jim know how to fight, [but] they fight differently. They're trying to steer this young man to this path they believe is the right path. They've offered different versions of what it means to be a man... In our version, will it be much of a surprise that he becomes Batman? It might not be."

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page ... e&id=56253

- In the Interview Room with Gotham’s Victoria Cartagena and Andrew Stewart-Jones (Gotham TVPodcast):

In the Interview Room with Gotham’s Victoria Cartagena and Andrew Stewart-Jones
by Gotham TVPodcast

EXCLUSIVE: There are many fascinating pairings set for Gotham, from Jim Gordon and Harvey Bullock to Fish Mooney and Oswald Cobblepot, and Gotham TV Podcast got the opportunity to interrogate the Detective partnership of Renee Montoya (Victoria Cartagena) and Crispus Allen (Andrew Stewart-Jones) about the TV show, their characters, the role of the Montoya / Allen partnership and the influence of the comic series Gotham Central on the show. We get to hear that their off-screen friendship is as strong as their on-screen partnership, we find out Victoria Cartagena’s favourite arc of the comic series Gotham Central and we uncover some details about Detective Allen’s past.

In the build up to the release of the Gotham premiere on Fox in the USA (22nd September) and Channel 5 in the UK, our look at the comic series Gotham Central shows the importance of this detective partnership to the Major Crimes Unit (M.C.U.) of the Gotham City Police Department and we can’t wait to see this great Detective alliance brought to the screen. You can read the interview below but there’s nothing better than hearing them in person. Check out the full interview where they answer all of our questions.


Gotham TV Podcast: What drew you to audition for a role in the upcoming batman prequel series Gotham? Did you have much exposure to previous incarnations of this universe such as the movies, comics or TV shows?

Victoria Cartagena (Renee Montoya): When I got the call for the audition there was no script there were only dummy sides [scenes unconnected to the TV show Gotham], however, I was aware that it had something to do with Batman’s Gotham and, because I’d been a fan all my life, I certainly wanted a chance to be part of the show. Because i grew up watching the Batman re-runs with Adam West and seeing all the Batman films from the 80s, 90s all the way up to the Nolan films, I’ve seen them all in the theatre so I was definitely familiar and excited to even audition for it.

Andrew Stewart-Jones (Crispus Allen): Honestly, the audition was one of a bunch on Valentine’s Day this year. I was just trying to get through the day. At the time, I had no idea what I might be getting involved in. Also the role was a possible recurring so although that is wonderful, I was already auditioning for series regulars roles so this wasn’t high on the list. I should add that the folks behind Gotham were very secretive. I had no idea exactly what I was reading for.

GTVP: You’ve been cast in the roles of Renee Montoya and Crispus Allen, detectives in the Gotham City Police Department (G.C.P.D.). What qualities of the character of Montoya and Allen drew you to their characters?

Cartagena: I love that she’s passionate and fiercely loyal and I’m really drawn to what a bad-ass she is. Cause she certainly has a swagger, that I don’t, so that’s fun to play. She works with some really tough guys but she can hang with the best of them. And as an actor I appreciate that she’s flawed. She’s strong and intelligent but at the same time she’s quick to anger and it sometimes clouds her judgment. So she’s tough but vulnerable too and that’s always interesting to play.

Stewart-Jones: Without a doubt, his moral compass would always be his outstanding quality. In a world so dark and corrupt, Allen has his eye on the right way to do things. I love that.

GTVP: This is the first screen outing for Renee Montoya. She is known in the comics to have a complex and interesting back story in both her professional and private life. Will we see any of these complexities play out in the TV series?

Cartagena: So I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future but in the episodes we have shot you will DEFINITELY get a glimpse into the complex relationships, for sure (laughs).

GTVP: This is also the first screen outing for Allen. He is known in the comics to be fiercely loyal to his friends but doesn’t suffer fools lightly. Will we see any of these strong character traits play out in the TV series?

Stewart-Jones: Rob Brown played a G.C.P.D. officer by the name of Allen in The Dark Knight Rises. Just FYI. But yes, this is Crispus Allen’s big debut as such. You’ve basically described me, Andrew, to a tee… so yes.

GTVP to Victoria Cartagena: Another important person in Renee’s life is Detective Crispus Allen, your partner in the G.C.P.D. Given they have such a close relationship how has it been creating and developing that bond with Andrew Stewart Jones?

Cartagena: I absolutely could not have asked for a better screen partner. From the first day we walked on to set we had this immediate connection and he’s become a really great friend and I think that our bond keeps strengthening the more that we work together and its certainly transferred onto the screen. He’s just an amazing actor, a very generous actor and a lot of fun to be around. So I’m really just grateful to be able to be his partner.

GTVP to Andrew Stweart-Jones: Detective Allen is very protective of Renee Montoya, his partner in the G.C.P.D., and is known in the comics to have her back in many tough situations both in the field and in the office. Are you enjoying creating this partnership with Victoria Cartagena as Renee Montoya?

Stewart-Jones: Working with Victoria is an absolute honor and a treat. She is incredible. Very giving, funny and gullible. So susceptible to all of my shenanigans – which I LOVE! The on-screen relationship, I believe, will benefit from the instant connection we had as professionals.

GTVP to Victoria Cartagena: We’ve been covering the comic series Gotham Central in the lead up to the show and have particularly been enjoying the interplay between your character and Crispus Allen. We know that you’ve been reading the series too. Are there any standout moments that you read and would like to see transferred to the TV series?

Cartagena: I really love the story arc for Renee in Half a Life [issues 5 - 9] she went through a lot of highs and lows. So I really hope it makes it onto the show because what stood out to me was how strong the bond is between Montoya and Allen. During those really tough times (Crispus) Allen was the only one that really went to bat for her and he had her back without question. You could just see how fiercely loyal they are to one another. So they’re more than partners, they’re friends or…more like family actually. I hope that the audience get to see that bond and it was important for me to read that on paper to make sure we were getting the job done.

GTVP to Andrew Steward-Jones: We’ve been covering the comic series Gotham Central in the lead up to the show and have particularly been enjoying the interplay between your character and Renee Montoya. We know a number of the cast have been given Gotham Central to prepare for their roles. Were you given any reading material to guide your preparation of your character and to what extent do you balance this with the bringing new ideas to the role?

Stewart-Jones: I wasn’t asked to read anything but I’m a bit of a comic nut. I didn’t want to just lift the character off the comic book pages and present him on people’s screens. I wanted him to be human. Accessible. But, at the same time, I am committed to always having the comic as the foundation upon which I build.

GTVP to Victoria Cartagena: Gotham has many different characters on the path to greater destinies, Jim Gordon eventually becomes the Commissioner of the G.C.P.D., the young Bruce Wayne will in adulthood become the Batman and Oswald Cobblepot is taking his first steps on the road to leading the criminal underworld, which of these narratives most excites you?

Cartagena: I’ve had the privilege to do at least one scene with all of these actors so I’m just looking forward to what each one of them brings to the story because they are so talented and they bring their own unique and original take on the portrayal so it’s just going to be thrilling to watch. (My answer is) all of them.

GTVP to Andrew Stewart-Jones: Gotham has some other interesting characters on the payroll of the G.C.P.D., there is the mystery of Edward Nygma, the intensity of Jim Gordon’s moral code, the political aspirations of Captain Sarah Essen and the old school style of Harvey Bullock. How does this mix of characters affect the dynamic in the G.C.P.D. and which of these characters interest you the most?

Stewart-Jones: The beauty, mystery and sheer fun of Gotham is the mufti-faceted dynamics of the relationships. It’s never ending. Always escalating. It’s fascinating to witness. I was Harvey’s partner before Gordon and so there is tension. A wound or two. Deep history. I’m closest to him. I won’t say if that’s good or bad.

GTVP: The fan reaction is building for this show in a big way, are you excited for the New York premiere of Gotham in September where you and your fellow cast members get to experience the fan reaction to the pilot first hand?

Victoria: For sure, I’m definitely excited. We’ve been working on this for months, it feels like a really long time and we really can’t wait to share it with the public and I really hope to hear back from the fans and I hope they enjoy it and I think that they will. So, Yes, can’t come soon enough. Just a few more weeks.

Stewart-Jones: When the word for my level of excitement is invented, I will happily use it ad nauseam. Until then we can use the longest word from Mary Poppins. It’s PGA rated, which helps.

GTVP: Finally, if Gotham TV Podcast were to be questioned in the suspect interview room at the G.C.P.D., which of the Montoya-Allen partnership would play the “Good Cop” and who would play the “Bad Cop”?

Victoria: This is my favourite question. So…you guys are so great that I think that there would be no need either of us to play the bad cop. But, on the off chance that one of you broke the law or you just had something that we need like some information then I’m pretty sure that Montoya would be the one to ride you until you spill the beans because she is a dog with a bone that one.Yeah I’d put my money on Montoya.

Stewart-Jones: If you ever end up being questioned by us, that information will not help you in the slightest and you will be wishing and praying to wake up from your bad dream! Gotham TV Podcast… do not cross Allen and Montoya! Oh, and thank you for this. I’ll be listening in. Enjoy the premiere.


Derek O’Neill and John Harrison are hosts of the Gotham TV Podcast, the unofficial podcast about the TV show Gotham and the connected DC universe. A very special thank you for this interview to Amy at Channel 5 and Holly, Marc and Steven at Warner Bros for their help and most importantly we want to thank Victoria Cartagena and Andrew Stewart-Jones for their time.

http://gothamtvpodcast.com/gotham-tv-po ... art-jones/

[Shelby]

- Robin Lord Taylor cita a la angustia de Breaking Bad para ayudarle a conseguir el codiciado personaje de TV (mirror.co.uk):

Robin Lord Taylor cita a la angustia de Breaking Bad para ayudarle a conseguir el codiciado personaje de TV
Por Tufayel Ahmed 12 Oct, 2014 21:47

The young star lost out on the role of Todd in the Emmy Award-winning drama, but the show's casting directors were impressed enough to cast him in their next major project

Gotham’s Robin Lord Taylor has told how losing out on a role in Breaking Bad helped him land the maniacal role of The Penguin in the new Batman show.

The new series - launching on Channel 5 tomorrow night - focuses on the unruly underbelly of Gotham City before Bruce Wayne finds his heroic calling, and it's safe to say the drama will make a star out of Taylor.

But years before getting his big break in Gotham, the actor was snubbed for the part of Todd in Breaking Bad in favour of Jesse Plemons.

Now, however, he’s had the last laugh by earning rave reviews as villain Oswald Cobblepot, aka The Penguin - famously played by Danny DeVito in 1992’s Batman Returns - in the 16-part show after casting producers remembered him from his previous audition.

He explained: “It’s one of those things, as a struggling actor for so long, you get close to things and they don’t happen.

“You remind yourself, as crushing it as in the moment, that this doesn’t mean it’s the end. It just means there’s more opportunities out there.

“You learn, too, that you’re not necessarily auditioning for a specific role, you’re auditioning for the casting directors so that they know you and will keep you in mind for future things.

“Sharon Bialy and Sherry Thomas, who cast Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead, have been my champions. I owe so much to them.

“You don’t get a job and you try your hardest to put it out of your mind, and if you’re lucky like I was something else comes down the pipe.”

Taylor admits to being a huge fan of DeVito’s portrayal of Cobblepot on the big screen and hopes the iconic actor will make a cameo in Gotham.

“If we could get Danny DeVito on set any time, I would be happier than a pig in s**t,” he gushed.

“I think he’d be incredibly, incredibly fun."

He continued: “I didn’t really need to study Oswald cos I’d seen that movie so many times.

“It is a slightly different approach to the character with what we’re trying to do with Gotham as opposed to Batman Returns. It’s a little more rooted in a realistic universe.

“Even though we’re creating this very, very dark world, the trick is to find the fun and I wish I could do half the justice they do to the character in terms of that fun and excitement they have for him.”

Transforming into slimy Penguin requires hours of make-up and prosthetics to look as grotesque as possible.

Taylor said: “It was another chapter in Robin Lord Taylor’s surreal life.

“I’ve never played a character that’s been so physically removed from how I look in my day-to-day life. I felt like it was all very Hollywood, I was making magic.

“Once I get on set, we put on the nose, and they spray my skin to make it all gross, and they paint my teeth and nails, and my hair gets all crazed.”

Launching new TV shows in America has become increasingly risky, even if they are rooted in an extremely popular franchise, as ratings continue to decline.

But hardened from his experience with Breaking Bad, Taylor is prepared for the show being a one-season wonder.

He said: “Danny Cannon, the executive producer, said to me, ‘No matter what happens, we’ll have 16 episodes of the best effing looking show in TV history’, and I truly believe that.

“Whatever happens is the way it goes but I know we’ve created something really beautiful and I feel so honoured to be part of it.”

http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/goth ... or-4428284

- Poniendo el foco sobre Robin Lord Taylor de GOTHAM (seat42f):

Poniendo el foco sobre Robin Lord Taylor de GOTHAM
Por Tiffany Vogt 13 Octubre, 2014

Every hero needs a villain, or we would not need heroes anymore. In the new Fox drama GOTHAM, one villain in the making is Oswald Cobblepot, aka The Penguin. It may be a few years before Oswald comes into his full villain glory, but right now, viewers are completely awestruck by newcomer Robin Lord Taylor’s mesmerizing performance as the dastardly Oswald Cobblepot. Viewers have already seen how Oswald uses his slight physique and his youthful appearance to deceive just about everyone of his true, duplicitous, utterly vile and sadistic nature. It is creepy and yet compelling all at once.

The man responsible for that incredible portrayal is Robin Lord Taylor, and during a recent press conference, Robin shared a bit more about Oswald’s rocky journey to true villainy.

What was it that first attracted to you the role when you found out about it?
ROBIN: The script. The role, I just auditioned for blindly. It was a fake scene that they wrote together with a fake character. I wasn’t told the name of the project. It wasn’t until I was going in the night before where my agent sort of gave me the tipoff and was like, “Oh, by the way, it’s a young Penguin and this is the origin story of Batman.” I was like, “Okay.” I had already prepared and I just went in and did my thing and it just worked out for once. It was amazing, and then when I read the script, it all just came together in such a brilliant way. The pilot script was one of the best ones that I’ve ever read. In terms of what I really responded to was the fact that this character — though, from all I’d ever seen, these larger than life, incredible performances of the character by Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito — but what was brought to the page was just this humanity and the fact that we’re actually trying to bring some real human pathos to this fantastic character and this fantastic world. That was immediately what I just keyed into.

Other than watching the actors that have played Penguin before, was there anybody else that inspired your portrayal?
ROBIN: I was definitely inspired by both Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito. They’re just two just amazing characters and to be connected to them in anyway is just — I’m still wrapping my brain around that, but I would say definitely they’ve been an amazing influence on me and then also just I’d read briefly that when they were considering years ago about in the Chris Nolan series. This may have all been rumor and conjecture. It probably was, but the thought of bringing in a Penguin character and have it be played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, who is one of my idols in terms of actors. I look at him and he’s just been such an inspiration for me in everything that I’ve done. I would say those guys.

How was Oswald developed? Were you given a lot of specific direction? Was Bruno Heller asking for emphasis on particular aspects?
ROBIN: I said it before. The script itself. Everything was there. I didn’t feel like I needed very much guidance because just what was on the page was just so clear and I think we just had a mutual understanding of where we wanted the character to go and the fact that the character in the script was present. There was sympathy there and there was humanity there. It was just sort of a matter of just keeping it going in that direction and that has been one of the most validating things for me is that people are picking up on that. You worry when you play a character like this. You worry about falling into just the trap of it being a two-dimensional, like a Snidely Whiplash type character just doing bad things for the sake of doing bad things. But I’ve been so lucky in this script. People have really been responding to the sympathetic aspect of the character, which I think is just such a new twist on this whole world that we’ve known, that has been around for 75 years in the Batman universe.

As far as the performance goes, you make Oswald’s very formal way of speaking sound very natural and almost kind of lyrical. Where does that come from for Oswald and for you as an actor?
ROBIN: Well, you see for Oswald, he was raised though they didn’t have much money, he comes from a somewhat aristocrat background. His family came from Europe and there’s the sense that they had a lot of money there, but then when they fled, all of that sort of went away. But the tradition still remains and I think you’ll definitely see that. Carol Kane is bringing that in spades to her character, and once you see her and her characterization, you really understand why he speaks the way he speaks. It’s where he’s coming from as a person. For me, it’s finding the relatable in this fantastic character. I love the way it’s written. I love the heightened sort of way that he speaks because it sets him apart from everybody else and it just illustrates where he came from and also what it is about him that is different and there’s a thing that’s just sort off about him.

You play so well against Jada Pinkett Smith. Can you talk about some of your favorite scenes to shoot?
ROBIN: I would say every chance I get to work with Jada is just an unbelievable experience. I’ve never worked so intimately with a star of her caliber and of her talent. When you come on set, like on the pilot when we first were interacting, I was really nervous and everyone has misconceptions about people before they meet them and then she was just so open and giving and so committed to the work and there was no ego and it was just open arms. She’s just there and ready to play and that’s an actor’s dream. You want to be with someone who is as committed and as excited about a project as you are. So every scene with her, and then of course on top of that, the scenes that really, really speak to me personally are the scenes that I have with Carol. I’ve been a fan of Carol Kane, who plays my mom, I’ve been a fan of hers for years and years and years and the connection that we have personally as well as professionally is just really, really dear to my heart. It’s also just those scenes stand out to me because it is a moment where Penguin doesn’t have to be plotting so much. I mean, he is constantly, but he can let his guard down a little bit and it’s just so gratifying to show another side of him and she’s just a brilliant, brilliant actress. You just lose yourself in her eyes when you’re sitting there across the couch from her. It’s really fantastic.

Right now Oswald seems to reject the penguin associations. Are we going to see him start to see it as a good thing?
ROBIN: I think like as the series goes along as he discovers his own power inside of himself. I think he starts to embrace that as instead of being something that he’s been — well it’s always been a name that he’s been called that’s somewhat tortured him his whole life, and then I think he reaches a point where he’s like, “Okay, well if you’re going to call me this, I’m going to embrace it and I’m going to run with it and I’m going to use that and I’m not going to be a powerless person anymore.” It’s almost like facing your fears and embracing the worst thing that’s said about you, and when you do that, that gives you the power. You then own that. I think that’s definitely Penguin’s trajectory.

How do you see your character’s relationship with his mother and how has that maybe sort of developed, as far as you can speak, in the episodes you’ve worked on so far?
ROBIN: I think they have a remarkably close relationship and I think that she’s been, I — I’m going to get into a little bit of the comic book history — he was a bullied kid and he didn’t have friends really and he was alone. He didn’t have peers that he could rely upon when he was young, so I think he found a lot of that in his mother. I feel like that definitely reads in their connection, just their closeness. It’s not so much creepy as it is a very insular, just very close connection that they have. I could end it there. I don’t know. But that’s sort of where that is.

One of the moments from a prior episode that really stood out was when Oswald is attempting to be a threatening kidnapper on the phone and just failing to have the gravitas that makes it seem like he really is the monster he’s been behaving as. Do you see more of that kind of black-comedy tone working its way into the character’s performance and into the show a little bit as we move forward?
ROBIN: I would hope so. That’s the thing. When I think about influences for me, like Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito, what I walk away from with their performance is just the sheer glee and fun that they bring to this sadistic person. The show itself is a dark show and it deals with very dark themes, but I love those moments. Since we’re starting at the beginning of his life, I \I love those moments where he makes missteps and you watch him grow and develop in front of you. It would be almost a disservice to the character if he just started off right away and knew exactly what he was doing. It’s those little like hiccups and failures that make him I think sympathetic. Well, sympathetic is weird because he’s terrible, but that make him identifiable or that people can identify with and not just a two-dimensional, just bad guy.

There have so many moments in the show so far where you’ve got to go at somebody with a knife or with a bottle. When do you think you’re going to get to kill somebody with an umbrella?
ROBIN: I don’t know, but I hope it’s soon. As we go, we develop his relationship with the umbrella, and in my head, I imagine that he befriends someone like Q from James Bond who makes him all the really fun funky umbrella gadgets, but who knows what they have coming down the pipe. I don’t know.

Are you feeling pressure or are you feeling like “no, I can do whatever I want?” How are you feeling about sort of joining an already established franchise like this?
ROBIN: I would be a robot, if I didn’t feel some pressure. This is above and beyond anything I ever expected for my own career. My goals were just to have health insurance and to not have to wait tables. Then, you find yourself in this world with this just amazingly smart, devoted audience. Of course, I want to fulfill everyone’s expectations and hopefully exceed them, but I’m not nervous only in the sense that I have the best — Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon are just — I feel so, I just trust them and feel so comfortable in their hands and they’re just so smart and they know exactly where this world is going. I don’t feel fear that people will be disappointed. I’m just excited because I really do believe that people will start seeing new things about these characters that have been a part of popular culture for 75 years. It’s just so exciting to be able to illuminate new parts of this personality.

Because Oswald is a villain and a fairly bad villain, how do you balance humanizing him and yet remembering that this is a very bad guy and you also have to portray that side?
ROBIN: I would say the way I personally approach it is the fact that, and this is where I identify with the character, not that I was ever bullied to the extent that he was, but we all understand what it means to be different and what it means to be treated like you’re less than another person just based on whatever it may be; the way you look or whatever it is, and that fear of being powerless and just being at the whim of everyone else. The only difference though is that Oswald has very little empathy. He just refuses to go back to that place of powerlessness. It is not even a conversation. There’s no conflict in his mind about that, so in terms of becoming powerful and not being walked upon any more, that’s the fuel that drives him to make these terrible decisions, and I think that is somewhat the human aspect of him. I think once you understand where someone has come from and their situation and their life and it does not excuse their horrible, horrible behavior, but it does humanize them and I think that’s definitely what I’m keying into and that’s what we’re trying to portray on the show.

When we do not even see a little bit of empathy in someone’s eyes, it is even more terrifying, don’t you think?
ROBIN: I think that’s what keeps everyone from going ballistic on everyone else in the world. It’s the fact that we have, the majority of us have that and to see someone who doesn’t is truly terrifying. But at the same time, where I approach the character, what I understand from reading the comics, the fact that he was bullied and that he was shown no mercy and no empathy when he was younger, that really forms a person. I believe that’s where he’s coming from in those situations. But he could definitely use a good psychiatrist. That’s for sure.

Are you enjoying that instant fan feedback you’ve been given when the episodes air?
ROBIN: I have been. It’s a rollercoaster. When we’re watching the show and I’m live-tweeting, I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. I have two computers open, my phone. It’s an intense experience because you want to respond to everybody and you want to absorb how people are reacting to your work. I never thought I would be part of something that people would have such an immediate response to and then also on top of that be able to respond in real time. It’s a connection to the audience that you — it’s almost like going back to theater. Because when you’re doing a play and you’re on stage, you feel that energy from people and you can tell when things are landing and you can tell what people are responding to, and then having Twitter there, it’s a very similar experience in a way. Only, in this world I’m actually responding back as opposed to just doing the thing on stage or whatever. . .The thing I would hate most is to come off as cynical or anything. I really truly, truly appreciate the feedback. When the news was announced that I would be playing the character, there was some negative feedback, which I wasn’t really expecting, but the feedback was stuff like, “He’s too skinny,” and “He’s too tall.” I was like, “oh my God, I’ve never heard these things said about me in my entire life.” If this is as bad as it gets, I’ll take it, whatever, but yes, I would say like 99.9% of the responses that I’ve been receiving have been so positive. It’s just so validating. You get to play a character that you love so much and then to have people responding to it in that way is just — it’s more than icing on the cake. It is the cake.

http://www.seat42f.com/robin-lord-taylor-interview.html

- John Doman habla sobre el interpretar al bat-villano jefe de la mafia Falcone ():

John Doman habla sobre el interpretar al bat-villano jefe de la mafia Falcone
Por Noelene Clark 13 Oct, 2014 | 1:28 p.m.

Though the streets in the hit TV drama “Gotham” are infested with hoodlums, hooligans and malefactors, one man stands at the center of the city’s organized crime — mob boss Carmine Falcone.

Played by John Doman, Falcone is the kingpin of the underworld in a city plagued by corruption. Despite his less-than-honest dealings in the city that will one day be Batman’s stomping ground, Falcone views himself as Gotham’s protector.

“I’m a businessman,” he tells Det. Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) in the series pilot. “You can’t have organized crime without law and order. I love this city, and I see it going to hell. I won’t let it go without a fight.”

That fight might pit him against the likes of good-guy Gordon, not to mention a legion of under-criminals — including Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett Smith), Maroni (David Zayas) and Penguin-to-be Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) — looking to usurp Falcone’s power. The series, which received a full season order after stellar ratings, continues Monday evening with a new episode titled “Arkham.”

Doman, whose previous credits include “The Wire,” “Damages” and more recently the period drama “Borgia,” brings gravitas to the character, dubbed “The Roman” in the pages of the DC comics from which the show draws its lore. Hero Complex caught up with Doman to talk about “Gotham” and Falcone.

Hero Complex: What appealed to you about the part of Carmine Falcone?

John Doman: Well, the offer of the job drew me to the role, ha-ha. But it’s fun to play bad guys, and I play bad guys a lot. But as long as they have a little complexity to them. And I think Carmine, as the story unfolds, you’ll see that he is a very complex and in some ways a very vulnerable character.

HC: He seems like a very sophisticated criminal.

JD: Well, he wears very nice suits, I can say that — all these custom-made, wonderful double-breasted suits they have for me are terrific. Yeah, I think he’s somewhat sophisticated. I don’t think he’s a real down-and-dirty lowlife kind of character. I think he’s a man of honor, really. A man of honor, a man of his word. He may be responsible for killing people, but they probably deserved to die.

HC: You’ve said that no villain views himself as a villain, and that every villain does what he does for a reason. What is Falcone’s reason?

JD: Well, he’s keeping order in the city, basically. In the first episode, I have a little speech there, where I talk about how much I love the city. And I think really, he feels that he’s doing the city a public service by keeping order. Somebody has to.

HC: Did you model your character after a particular gangster, from real life or from fiction?

JD: I just spent the last three years playing Rodrigo Borgia (in “Borgia”), who becomes Pope Alexander VI. And Mario Puzo, who wrote “The Godfather,” also wrote a book called “The Family” prior to “The Godfather” in which he told the story of Rodrigo Borgia, and he considered Rodrigo the first godfather. So Carmine is just in the line of godfathers. … He’s the boss. He’s obviously the real power figure. The other villains aren’t anywhere near as — they do not project as much power as Falcone does.

HC: Can you talk about his relationship with Fish Mooney?

JD: Well, that’s a complicated relationship as it plays out. I don’t really know where it’s going to go. Fish is supposedly working for me, but she’s obviously pretty independent in her own mind, and I think she would like to take over my position, and she’s obviously working at that. But I have no idea how that’s going to turn out.

HC: Are you a comics fan?

JD: Well, I was a comics fan when I was a little boy, but I haven’t read comics for a long time. I did read the Batman and Superman comics back when I was a kid. … I didn’t really read anything to brush up on the role. I mean, most of it’s on the page and in the script, what you need to know. And I haven’t seen any of the Batman movies, so I guess I’m a little behind the times.

HC: In “The Wire,” you played William Rawls of the Baltimore Police Dept. What’s it like playing both sides of the crime/law enforcement divide?

JD: Well, you know, these characters, there are things in common with these characters, even though they are on different sides of the law. Rawls was a real manipulator, and he really knew how to play the system and play the game. I think Carmine is the same in that sense, even though they’re on different sides of the law. They’re both very ambitious and want control and power.

http://herocomplex.latimes.com/tv/gotha ... s-falcone/?

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- La FOX ordena una temporada completa de "Gotham":

El Caballero Oscuro continúa en alza: la FOX acaba de ordenar seis episodios adicionales para la precuela de “Gotham,” lo que supondrá una primera temporada completa de 22 capítulos.

La serie ha tenido sólidos rátings para la cadena hasta el momento en esta temporada, por lo que la noticia no es de extrañar.

“‘Gotham debutó como una de las más comentadas series de la temporada de otoño, y por una buena razón. Bruno Heller y Danny Cannon han creado un mundo increíblemente rico, con personajes que te atraen y con un elenco que lleva a la vida a esos héroes y villanos de una manera que nunca hemos visto antes,” dice Dana Walden y Gary Newman, presidente y CEOs de Fox Television Group. “Estamos tan emocionados de ver hacia dónde llevan Bruno, Danny y todo el equipo de ‘Gotham’ esta historia durante el transcurso de la temporada, y muy agradecidos a todos los fans que la abrazaron este otoño.”

“Gotham,” ya ha hecho sus planes para su primer año y anunció que el actor Nicholas D’Agosto aparecerá como Harvey Dent — también conocido como el villano de Batman Dos-Caras — más adelante en la temporada, con la opción de que el actor se convierta en regular en la S2.


http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/foxs-go ... 201328630/

[Shelby]

- Gotham 1.05 Promo "Viper" (HD):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZzPLa8NHOw



- Descripción oficial del 1.07 "Penguin´s Umbrella":

1.07 "Penguin´s Umbrella": UN NUEVO LÍDER SE ALAZARÁ EN GOTHAM CITY (03 Nov 8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) - Mientras que la violencia entre Maroni (la estrella invitada David Zayas) y Falcone continúa ascendiendo, el Pingüino revela un nuevo componente de su manipuladora estrategia, forzando a Gordon a lidiar con las consecuencias de su decisión de perdonar la vida del Pingüino. Estrellas invitadas: Richard Kind como el Mayor James, Drew Powell como Butch Gilzean, Anthony Carrigan como Victor Zsaszs, Mekia Cox como Dr. Leslie Thompkins, David Zayas como Maroni, Jeremy Davidson como Nikolai, Danny Mastrogiorgio como Frankie Carbone, y Mackenzie Leigh como Liza.


http://www.gothamsite.com/gotham-spoilers

- Nueva imagen BTS (13-10-14):



(@ErinRRichards: Who's enjoying so far? We are!! @ben_mckenzie @realdavidmazouz @seanpertwee #Gotham)



Añadidos los enlaces y rátings del 1.04 "Arkham". Podéis encontrarlos AQUÍ

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- 'Gotham's' Robin Lord On Fan Reaction To 'Gotham':

http://bcove.me/7tvo1ub2


- Jada Pinkett Smith & Robin Lord Taylor On 'Gotham':

http://bcove.me/v3ps69r9




- Donal Logue sobre el llevar a Harvey Bullock a la vida en Gotham (heyuguys):

Donal Logue sobre el llevar a Harvey Bullock a la vida en Gotham
Por heyuguys 15 Oct, 2014

Gotham is set years before Bruce Wayne decides to become Batman, and though a younger version of the character is featured in the series, the spotlight is very much on Detective Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie).

When he arrives in Gotham City, Jim is partnered up with Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue), a cop who has been in the corrupt city long enough to have also become corrupted to some extent, though it’s not hard to see that the good man who one day ends up being the future Commissioner’s closest ally is in there somewhere.

Logue is superb in the series; his Harvey is rough around the edges, tough as nails and a great match for the very by the book Gordon. The chemistry between him and McKenzie is clear to see and fun to watch.

When I recently had the pleasure of talking to the actor who has made a huge impact in everything from Sons of Anarchy to Vikings, we discussed his role in Gotham in great detail, though the conversation kicked off with a look into Donal’s very interesting family life and his UK roots when I mentioned that I was speaking to him from my home in Cardiff.

Many thanks to Donal for taking the time for this interview.

Oh, that’s great! I have a cousin in Cardiff. I swear to God it’s probably still set up like this, but he has a shop that is half auto parts store and half restaurant. His name is Don Logue. I’ve spent some time in Cardiff…Erin’s from Cardiff, isn’t she? Erin Richards, who plays Barbara Keane on our show. She is very Welsh. Both my mother and father were from Kerry and they each had like ten kids in the family and they made it to the United States ultimately through Africa, Canada and England. Everybody else is all over the UK! So, we have family in Leicester, London, Luton, Birmingham, Cardiff and then all over Ireland. I grew up over here in the United States, but I didn’t have any aunts, uncles, cousins…I have 52 first cousins back in Ireland and the UK, so I’ve always spent my whole life back and forth. I’m always surprisingly more familiar with that kind of stuff than people would imagine because I sound like such a Celt and a desert rat, which I am.

I have to start by asking what it’s been like to see the hugely positive reaction to Gotham since the pilot aired?

It’s been great, and I have to say that there was an element of relief to it because we went to Comic-Con and we knew there was a massive awareness because it’s DC, because it’s Batman…there’s been 75 years of this. We were handed this gift and it’s in the DNA of Americans, this story. Unlike a lot of other shows I’ve done where you have to build awareness from scratch, this thing had so much awareness that we felt really stressed out for a long time and we were all excited to get the ship out of the harbour. The one question which was in the echo chamber the most, ‘How can you make a show about Batman without Batman?’, got kind of tiresome in a way because the show’s about Gotham and if anything, it’s about Jim Gordon’s journey through Gotham and what happened in this city that required Bruce Wayne to put on a mask and become a vigilante. So, we’re just glad that it’s out and running now and now that people are settling in and getting into it. The response is overwhelmingly positive which is great. It was a bit of a nail-biter. I’ve worked in this business for a long time and I’ve certainly done my fair share of television working on fairly iconic series’ like E.R., Sons of Anarchy and Law and Order, but this was a different level of scrutiny which I wasn’t used to.

Did you feel a lot of pressure from comic fans by taking on such a beloved character?

Totally. I welcome pressure like that, it’s cool, but it doesn’t inform the way I’m going to do something. I just have to do it the best way that I see how and take the lumps as they come. The fact that people care so much makes a big difference because you know that they invest a lot in this world and it’s super important to them.

Did you turn to any specific comic books for inspiration when you were first cast?

Gotham Central. The first thing I did was get all the books and just start digging in. I was actually very familiar with the animated series. My kids loved it and a friend of mine did a voice on it. I listened to it a million times, almost like a radio play because we have a house in Oregon which is about 1200 miles from our house in LA. We would do this 11 hour drive and there was a stretch for a couple of years where all they would do is watch the Batman animated series and I would just listen to it playing through the sound system in the car while they watched in the back. So I knew it, kind of intimately in a strange way.

Do you consider Harvey to be a bad guy or maybe a good guy forced to do bad things in a bad city?

I’m one of those people who always tries to bring empathy to all the guys I play and I always tend to like them and I do think at his core he’s good. He’s a survivor. He just backs the play that’s gonna let him live another day. I think when Jim Gordon comes around, he’s just tired of seeing these young do-gooders thinking they can make a difference, but there’s something about the qualities of Jim Gordon which is just so different and it really affects him along the lines of why he got into the police work in the first place and who he was.

Do you think as Harvey’s relationship with Jim develops, maybe Gotham will be a “redemption” story for your character as time passes?

I know for sure as we’ve actually gone through episodes like that. We’re in our eighth and ninth episode now filming and we actually get to see a glimpse into the past with Harvey which kind of explains how he got to where he is now. It’s a bit of an origin of the origin story, so those things are definitely addressed.

How does it feel knowing that Jim and Harvey ultimately fail, leading to Bruce Wayne becoming Batman? Does that play a role in how you approach the character?

No, because there’s something noble in two people standing on the edge of the sea shore with thimbles in their hands trying to beat back the sea. I think that’s the basis of a lot of really good stories, seeing people up against those sorts of odds. Luckily in my job, you get to meet everybody who has done the real thing, whether it’s police work or in the military or doctors in the field. It’s fascinating to hear the human stories. It’s worth having this kind of job, being able to travel and meet these sorts of people and talk to them about what they really do. I remember asking this doctor about how they deal with that kind of level of ER death all the time because you have victories and you have defeats, but you’ll go through your whole career and every day is a revolving door in an emergency room with more heartbreaking cases coming in. That’s never going to stop. But he did tell me about a case which was so particularly heartbreaking you can never shake, and I always think about stuff like that. It was those poignant types of stories. If you’re involved in police work, you’re never going to live in a crime free environment in the types of world cities that Gotham became the artistic representation of whether it be London or Mumbai or New York.

So, did you do any research with actual police officers before joining Gotham?

I didn’t. At the time I was filming the Gotham pilot, I was already involved with a run on Law and Order.

Of course!

Yeah, Special Victims Unit, and I was playing the Lieutenant who takes over and so I’ve been around this kind of world as part of my profession and I have a bunch of police friends and have played cops over the course of 25 years. It’s hilarious too because there are certain points in this profession where you think, ‘I really could perform surgery at this point’ which is completely and utterly false! [Laughs] Having been involved in a really heavy arc in Law & Order at the same time as the Gotham pilot was really helpful.

Which characters from the Batman universe are you most looking forward to interacting with?

You know, for some reason, I was always really drawn towards Harvey Dent and it looks like Harvey’s coming into play now in Gotham, so that’s great. I’ve always loved Alfred, and actually Alfred and I have some stuff coming up together this week, so that’s really exciting. I love Sean. We have two super cool UK cast members, so he’s just a joy to have around and as the season progresses, we get to take full advantage of the cast assembled. In the pilot, it’s really seems to be weighted on Jim and Harvey’s shoulders a lot, but it starts to spread out as time goes on.

One of my favourite parts of the pilot had to be seeing the relationship between Jim and Harvey play out actually. What’s it been like to work with Ben McKenzie so far?

It’s been fantastic! My sister worked on Southland with Ben and so Ben got a big thumbs up from my sister long before I knew Gotham was coming around. I was predisposed to like the guy and he’s great. He is kind of Jim Gordon. Ben is a really good athlete, a really smart guy, he’s like an old school Texas gentleman in a modern era. A really hard worker who is incredibly patient and very kind, which is kind of all that you need. Most importantly, he’s the captain of the ship on the set, and so he sets that kind of tone which has been great because we work crazy hours together. 14, 15, 16 hours a day sometimes. He’s been a great partner to have and go through this experience with. Some of the things we’ve done have had their critical fans and fervent, but smaller fanbases, but we’re experiencing something different on a different level with Gotham and I feel like I’ve got a partner to walk through that with.

Do you look online to see what fans are saying at all?

Absolutely. It started a while back because whatever television show we were doing at the time the suggestion was to get a Twitter account to try and raise awareness online and so now they want you to do things which are so different from the past; live Tweet performances and stuff, so you cannot help but be exposed to whatever the rumblings are on the internet. You have to be careful with it. My children grew up with the internet and it’s water off a duck’s back when they get into stuff on the internet with people, but for adults, it’s shocking sometimes, you know? I just remember one of the worst things while doing Vikings, you can read 1000 great things, but you read one really cruel stupid thing and it just won’t let you sleep at night. It’s so funny because my children have such thick skins to that kind of stuff because they grew up with Facebook and Twitter, but yeah, we’re aware of it for sure.

I have to ask, would you have any interest at all in reprising the role of Harvey Bullock in a future Batman movie if the opportunity presented itself?

Oh, wow! You know, it would be interesting because to me there wouldn’t really be any distinction and that’s the fun thing about the job, you just get to break it down scene by scene day by day and that’s the best way to approach it. I hadn’t thought of that, but that would be awesome!

Thanks so much for taking the time to speak to me today Donal, I’m a big fan and Gotham has been amazing so far!

Thank you so much, have a great day in Wales!

http://www.heyuguys.com/heyuguys-interv ... fe-gotham/

[Shelby]

- Gotham - 'Family Meeting' Clip from 1.05 "Viper":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuhuUFUn_xY


- Gotham - 'Nothing In The Fire' Clip from 1.05 "Viper":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiClOEia5E4


- Gotham - 'That Is A Funny Story ' Clip from 1.05 "Viper":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3g6L1nzy44g


- Gotham - 'With His Bare Hands' Clip from 1.05 "Viper":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y98Jv_jhlU

[Shelby]

- Nuevas imágenes BTS (16-17 Oct, 2014):



(@seanpertwee: Alfred's 2nd sAlfie , with the delightful Mr.Cobblepot #Gotham
@thedrewpowell: A couple of @Gotham toughs. @johnenos3 #Gotham
@seanpertwee: Double trouble @LesleyAnnBrandt #Gotham)

[Shelby]

- Stills del 1.06 "Spirit of the Goat":




- Stills del 1.07 "Penguin´s Umbrella":

[Shelby]

- PaleyFest NY: "Gotham" -Full Panel- (18-10-14):

https://screen.yahoo.com/paleyfest-ny-c ... rc=default

[Shelby]

- Gotham 1.05 "Viper" Sneak Peek:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8soz-RYARQ

[Shelby]

- Gotham 1.06 "Spirit of the Goat" Promo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhBWgO-gFdU


Añadidos los enlaces y rátings del 1.05 "Viper". Podéis encontrarlos AQUÍ

[Shelby]

- Behind-the-Scenes of Gotham "Harvey Dent" (DC All Access):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tebs7u4xRg


- Nuevo banner promocional:





- On the Set: En el Interior del Mundo de el nuevo éxito más guay del otoño Gotham (TVGuide):

On the Set: En el Interior del Mundo de el nuevo éxito más guay del otoño Gotham
Por Damian Holbrook 21 Oct, 2014 07:01 AM ET

Gotham city — Sources close to the Gotham City Police Department have confirmed that the crime rate in the area has nearly tripled in the past month. Many attribute this spike to the recent murders of billionaires Thomas and Martha Wayne, as well as rising interest in the city's infamous Arkham district, home of the failed Arkham Asylum and turf-war favorite of organized crime.

There are those, too, who blame the increase in back-alley homicides, child trafficking, and a balloon-obsessed vigilante within the region on Fox's new hit Gotham. And they have a warning for those who think the DC Comics-inspired mayhem is going to stop anytime soon.

"It keeps getting more and more twisted," according to Ben McKenzie, star of the drama about the fictional metropolis in the days way before Batman suited up. As the series' moral compass, McKenzie's detective (and future commissioner) Jim Gordon has a tricky task: cleaning up the streets of comics' most infamous town — populated by the younger versions of well-known comics characters, including Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman (Camren Bicondova); Edward Nygma, aka the Riddler (Cory Michael Smith); Carmine Falcone (John Doman); Alfred Pennyworth (Sean Pertwee); and Bruce Wayne (David Mazouz) — while also convincing Batfans that the Dark Knight isn't the only hero Gotham deserves.

So far, he's been doing a pretty good job. The series premiere drew 14.1 million viewers (including seven days of DVR playback) opposite the return of those jokers on The Big Bang Theory, and the second episode retained 86 percent of the audience. Netflix snapped up the rights to Gotham before a single episode aired, and even critics — professionals and otherwise — have embraced the prequel. McKenzie is grateful the response has been so positive since, he admits, "the show has the added scrutiny" of often prickly fanboys and fangirls. "I'm pleased that everyone sees how good this is — and can be," he says.

On set, that upbeat sentiment can be felt from cast trailers to craft services. It's ironic, given Gotham's grim vibe, yet even on a drizzly, dank day of shooting on New York's Long Island Sound, McKenzie and company are having a blast. In the downtime between scenes, he and Donal Logue, who co­stars as Gordon's corrupt and volatile partner, Harvey Bullock, are all smiles and nodding heads as a camera operator explains an upcoming sequence involving an exploding truck. "We've created a warm and welcoming atmosphere on the set where everyone feels like they can do good work," explains McKenzie. "But it's a pressurized environment, for sure. People want this show to be great, and a lot of money is invested in it, so there's a lot of expectation." And not just from executives or advertisers. When asked if they were concerned about reworking such iconic characters for TV and risk upsetting the comic book contingent, Logue and McKenzie point to the endorsement of DC Comics' chief creative officer, Geoff Johns, as the geek version of a papal blessing.

"Geoff was very happy with us creating our own versions of these characters," says Logue. "I feel defended by that." For McKenzie — who previously voiced Bruce Wayne in the Batman: Year One animated DVD movie — the main worry has been hitting the right notes as the noble but flawed Gordon readers have come to know and respect in books like Batman: Year One without coming off as, pun intended, cartoonish. "My only obligation is to be true to that overall spirit of the character and the story, and then make a great show. In that sense, I'll do my best job and let the chips fall where they may."

Those chips McKenzie speaks of could have fallen quite far if producers got this wrong. The brainchild of executive producers Bruno Heller (The Mentalist) and Danny Cannon (Nikita), Gotham has the privilege — and the curse — of having 75 years of Batman lore to cull from, as well as help from a summer-long marketing blitz that included Comic-Con appearances, subway posters, and billboards. Still, Heller knows that a true win for Team Gotham means keeping fans tuned in beyond any early buzz. "It's very much a show about the long story," he says. "And it's a story that everyone knows and loves, so we really have to be entertaining in each episode, both rolling forward and detailing that great history."

And even though it's not a straight-up superhero show like The Flash or Arrow, Gotham does fit into the shared DC universe currently being forged on TV by Johns. (Episode 2 even includes a wink to Arrow's Queen Consolidated in a skyline shot.) "The Yoda of this whole project is Geoff, who is a genuine genius in this world," says Heller. "He knows it backward and forward and loves it. I've been working very closely with him from the very first seeds of the idea right through to now. It's important to him that we stay true to the DC vision at large, but try to come at it from a different angle so it's fresh and new."

To ensure that, the producers mashed up the Gordon origin story with a classic TV crime procedural that is both anachronistic (cop cars are vintage, but the show sticks to no specific era) and ambitious, then coated it in a feature-film sheen. "We have a big budget that we try to keep inside of," says Heller. "Not to blow [our studio] Warner Bros.' trumpet, but this show really couldn't be done anywhere else. There is a long tradition of extremely efficient production on the nuts-and-bolts level there." The overall look of the show and its New York—in-the-'70s feel, according to Heller, is all the work of Cannon, who also directed the pilot. "It's a huge credit to Danny's vision," he says. "I won't say it's an easy show to make. It's a really, really tough show to make, but that's the joy of it."

In addition, Gotham packs an old-school "POW!" thanks to a rock-solid cast: McKenzie earned raves for his dramatic evolution from O.C. pinup to leading man on Southland. Logue, who's racked up killer credits on Sons of Anarchy, Law & Order: SVU, and Vikings, is the reliable utility player capable of comedy and menace. Jada Pinkett Smith, as sadistic mafioso Fish Mooney, is the marquee name. And Robin Lord Taylor, as the nascent Penguin, Oswald Cobblepot, is the revelation.

"My feeling before we even started was that whoever played the Penguin, so much of our fortune was going to rest on his shoulders," says Logue, praising the actor for bringing "gravitas, psychological damage, pain, and sensitivity" to a role that's proven more brutal than any past on-screen portrayals of the character.

"His ambition exceeds his empathy," says Taylor of the Penguin. "His goal to never be powerless is what drives him, and he doesn't let anyone stand in his way. He would much rather kill than be killed." And he has. With the presumed-dead Cobblepot secretly back in town and twitching to make ex-boss Mooney and mob kingpin Falcone pay for ordering Gordon to off him in the premiere, the bodies have been dropping and the players left standing are in for a surprise. "He's keeping a low profile for now," Taylor says. "But he already has plans of pitting people against each other."

So too does Pinkett Smith's Fish. And the simmering showdown between the grande dame of Gotham's underbelly and the former underling who tried to dethrone her is set to ignite an all-out mob war over the Arkham area in the next few episodes. "Basically, she's trying to take everyone out," says Pinkett Smith with the vigorous laugh of her coldhearted nightclub owner. "Fish actually thinks she has what it takes to run everything. We'll see how that goes, but she wants it all."

Pinkett Smith was drawn to the idea of playing the show's only main character who's not from the comics because, for starters, it appealed to her inner risk-taker. "This is one of those projects that you knew for an absolute fact wasn't going to ride the middle. It was either going to work or it was going to fail hard," she says. "I'm a big gambler anyway, and I always like to do things that are different. So I was like, 'Let's just go for it.'" Second, there was the potential for her fascinating, maniacal Mooney to find a life beyond the small screen. "What a wonderful opportunity to create a character that really hasn't been explored yet," Pinkett Smith says. "It would be a dream come true if she ends up in the comics."

Before that, though, Gotham has bigger fish to fry. Heading toward their midseason finale, the major players will be facing major changes. With the GCPD under orders from Mayor Aubrey James (Richard Kind) to round up a rogue's gallery of villains to toss into the soon-to-be-reopened Arkham Asylum, more familiar baddies are set to step in. Viewers will also get to see what Logue considers "the seminal act" that turned Bullock into the dirty cop he is, and Mazouz's broody, self-destructive Bruce may even make a friend his own age in Bicondova's Selina Kyle. "They are thrown together for reasons I can't tell you now," teases Heller, revealing only that a mutual fascination between the rich orphan and the feral street kid will serve as "the starting point of their relationship. There's a lot of history between them that we will get to as we move forward."

Likewise, some light will be shed on the dynamic between Bruce and the far-from-fatherly Alfred. "He is very much in the story as a counterpoint to Gordon," says Heller, contrasting the cop's concern for the kid with the butler's explosive approach to disciplining his charge. "If you work backward to how the hell Batman was created, it's clear that whoever was guarding that boy, whoever was guiding him through his teenage years, was not someone who convincingly told him that violence is not the answer."

Through it all, of course, will be our hero, Det. James Gordon, fighting the good fight, avenging the murder of Bruce's parents, and trying to save his once-great city. As McKenzie describes his character: "One good man in a corrupt department trying to clean it up while the world around him crumbles apart."

And there is no crime in that.

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Inside-Goth ... 88214.aspx