Gotham City

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

In the first season, GCPD Detective James Gordon and his partially corrupt partner Harvey Bullock are tasked with solving a number of criminal cases in Gotham City, including the murder of 12-year-old Bruce Wayne's parents. A gang war brews between crime families led by Carmine Falcone, Sal Maroni, and Fish Mooney, with low-level thug Oswald Cobblepot forced into its center. In the second season, Theo Galavan surfaces in Gotham to kill Bruce Wayne for the Order of St. Dumas; Gordon is framed for murder by Edward Nygma; and at Arkham Asylum, Professor Hugo Strange runs unorthodox experiments in a secret facility called Indian Hill, transforming its inmates into monsters for the mysterious Court of Owls. In the third season, Gordon becomes a bounty hunter working to track down the Indian Hill monsters. Jervis Tetch threatens the city's safety with a deadly virus; Cobblepot and Nygma struggle for control over Gotham; and Bruce is told by the Court of Owls' leader to seek out Ra's al Ghul to complete his training. In the fourth season, Bruce begins to fight crime as a masked vigilante tentatively named the "Dark Knight" to prepare for Ra's al Ghul's return; Sofia Falcone arrives in Gotham to reclaim the criminal underworld from Cobblepot, who has established a new law of "licensed crime"; and Jeremiah Valeska is driven insane and forms an alliance with Ra's al Ghul to turn the city into an isolated ruin, forcing Bruce to fulfill his destiny as "Gotham's Dark Knight". In the fifth and final season, Gordon and his allies attempt to restore order in Gotham. Nyssa al Ghul seeks vengeance for her father's death; Eduardo Dorrance takes control of the city's military presence; and Jeremiah hatches a scheme to torment Bruce and cement their "bond" as hated enemies. A decade later, Bruce returns to Gotham, which has flourished with Gordon as commissioner of the GCPD, and begins fighting crime as a bat-inspired vigilante, capturing Cobblepot and Nygma after both attempt to kill Gordon. Jeremiah, having feigned brain death during this time, escapes from Arkham to resume his rivalry with Bruce, but is captured by him soon after, starting animosity between Jeremiah and Bruce's alter-egos. Gordon decides against retirement and uses a searchlight atop the police department to contact the new vigilante.

In Their Own Story

Development for a prequel series based on Batman began in September 2013, with Bruno Heller hired by Fox to serve as a writer and executive producer. In March 2014, Fox originally ordered 16 episodes for its first season before expanding it to 22. Filming primarily took place across New York City. In May 2018, Fox renewed the series for a fifth and final season, consisting of 12 episodes, which premiered on January 3, 2019, and concluded on April 25, 2019. A prequel series, Pennyworth, starring Jack Bannon as a younger version of the iteration of Alfred Pennyworth portrayed by Sean Pertwee in Gotham, began airing in July 2019 and concluded in October 2022.

Reader's Guide

The cast includes Ben McKenzie as James Gordon, described by McKenzie as "a truly honest man. The last honest man in a city full of crooked people. He's not an anti-hero, he's a true hero – but he will have to compromise." Donal Logue plays Harvey Bullock, Gordon's ethically conflicted partner. David Mazouz plays Bruce Wayne; Mazouz said, "you never got to explore what Bruce Wayne was going through or his grieving process or what his anger makes him do. At this point in his life, he's angry, he's scared, he's compulsive, and he's lonely." Other main cast members include Zabryna Guevara as Sarah Essen, Sean Pertwee as Alfred Pennyworth, Robin Lord Taylor as Oswald Cobblepot / The Penguin, Erin Richards as Barbara Kean, Camren Bicondova as Selina "Cat" Kyle, Cory Michael Smith as Edward Nygma / The Riddler, Victoria Cartagena as Renee Montoya, Andrew Stewart-Jones as Crispus Allen, John Doman as Carmine Falcone, Jada Pinkett Smith as Fish Mooney, Morena Baccarin as Leslie "Lee" Thompkins, James Frain as Theo Galavan / Azrael, Jessica Lucas as Tabitha Galavan / Tigress, Chris Chalk as Lucius Fox, Drew Powell as Butch Gilzean / Cyrus Gold / Solomon Grundy, Nicholas D'Agosto as Harvey Dent, and Michael Chiklis as Nathaniel Barnes / The Executioner.

Did You Know?

• The series premiered on Fox on September 22, 2014, and ended on April 25, 2019, after five seasons totalling 100 episodes.
• Fox originally ordered 16 episodes for the first season before expanding it to 22.
• Filming primarily took place across New York City.
• A prequel series, Pennyworth, starring Jack Bannon as a younger Alfred Pennyworth, began airing in July 2019 and concluded in October 2022.
• Mikhail Mudrik portrays an adult Bruce wearing the Batman suit in the series finale, and Lili Simmons portrays an adult Selina in the series finale.