If you thought the comedian at Fish Mooney’s nightclub was the “Gotham” series’ introduction of The Joker, you’re not entirely off.
FOX’s Batman prequel “Gotham” premiered on Monday, introducing future villains such as The Riddler, The Penguin, Poison Ivy and Catwoman, but the show has remained secretive as to whether The Joker will appear in the series.
Many fans believed The Joker was at the nightclub during the first episode, but producers Bruno Heller and Danny Canno explained to DC All Access back in August his debut won’t be as obvious as the other villains.
"We do have an approach for the Joker," Heller told DC All Access. "We have to keep our approach very close to our collective chest, because the Joker is, to a degree, the crown jewel of the Batman villains."
Cannon added, "We're lucky in that television now is binge-watched by a lot of people, and the slow burn is now necessary…The great thing about the slow burn now is that we can take our time getting their and really draw people in, and earn the right to discover somebody who may or may not be the Joker."
There were multiple rumors speculating about the Joker’s appearance before the show aired on Monday. Back in July, Bleeding Cool reported sources claimed there would be several Joker fake-outs before “Gotham” revealed his true identity.
"Basically, every episode in the first season will introduce a character that might be a future Joker, each emphasizing aspects of the character's iconography, a card sharp, a flower seller, a clown, or just a guy with a very big grin," according to Bleeding Cool. "All relatively unknown actors. All potentially a Joker. But only one of them being the actual Clown Prince Of Crime."
Still, fans will have to wait and see if the show teases more Joker calling cards throughout the series. “Gotham” airs Mondays on FOX at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
