FOX’s ‘Gotham’ Trailer: What Bat-Secrets Are Revealed in the First Footage?

FOX's Batman prequel drama 'Gotham' has been burning a hole in the internet with the reveal of its first official trailer, just hours after the network officially announced the Dark Knight would rise again with a full series order. We combed through the footage with a detective's eye, so what Bat-secrets lie hidden in the world of FOX's 'Gotham'?

“I love this city, but I see it going to hell.”

There’s something of a mystery behind the older figure portrayed by ‘The Wire’ vet Richard Dolan, seen in both trailers talking to Gordon about the increasing desolation of Gotham City. His character has yet to be formally identified. We’d theoretically place him as an older-mentor figure to Gordon, given he has some interest in protecting the city. At a later point in the trailer, we see him approaching someone with their hands up, which some have speculated to be Robin Taylor’s Oswald Cobblepot, who takes something of a beating in the footage.

Who's who in the background?

This is ‘Spin City’ star Richard Kind portraying Gotham’s mayor Aubrey James, as seen on campaign posters outside Fish Mooney’s lair. We also see several other police figures glimpsed throughout the footage, the figure behind Donal Logue’s Harvey Bullock supposedly Victoria Cartagena’s Renee Montoya, though it could also be Zabryna Guevara’s Captain Sarah Essen. We also see Andrew Stewart-Jones in a diner scene, playing Crispus Allen.

Fish Mooney, Joe Chill?

Though she wasn’t given her own promotional photos, here we see Jada Pinkett’s Fish Mooney, an original gangster character who predates Oswald Cobblepot as one of Gotham’s most notorious criminals. We see her sizing up Gordon, though also conducting a few fight sequences of her own, and carrying an umbrella that we’ve also seen in Cobblepot’s hand. Coincidence, or just a rainy town all around?

Also note that the Wayne’s killer is heavily masked, likely for purposes of revisiting the character later on in the series with a more recognizable actor, though its possible that there’s a conspiracy element to the Wayne murder, as we also see Fish Mooney attacking an unknown associate in an alley.

Alfred Begins

Curiously, the Wayne funeral scenes contain the only trailer appearance of Sean Pertwee’s Alfred Penntyworth, though we suspect we’ll see plenty more from the ex-Marine caretaker in the series itself. Says his official description, “a tough-as-nails ex-marine from East London who has loyally served the Waynes. Now, in the wake of their tragic deaths, he’s fiercely protective of the young Bruce Wayne.” Also note another appearance from Mayor Aubrey James, among the mourners.

The Gotham of 'Gotham'

Like Metropolis, Gotham City has frequently drawn inspiration from a number of real-world locales, the Christopher Nolan films in particular covering everywhere from Chicago to Detroit, and New York. FOX’s ‘Gotham’ fairly clearly leans on the New York comparisons, but note the elevated trains visible in a few aerial shots, no doubt to give the city its own unique personality, but also potentially to nod toward Nolan’s Gotham City.

Barbara Gordon, We Presume

Though we see Gordon and Bullock at a few seedy locales, scantily clad woman and all, this appears to be Erin Richards as Gordon’s fiancée Barbara Kean, also seen later in the trailer while Gordon sports a curious bandage around his wrist.

Penguin Problems

It isn’t yet entirely clear what position Oswald Cobblepot occupies within the city’s crime structure that we see him under attack at numerous points during the trailer, but especially pertinent to note is the biological waste sign present on a barrel just behind Detective Bullock. Gordon tosses Cobblepot into the river as Bullock looks on, so might we be seeing a few of the Penguin’s mutated origins here?

The Bat and the Cat

We haven’t specifically seen David Mazouz’s Bruce Wayne and Camren Bicondova's Selina Kyle interacting on camera, though we know Selina to be familiar with the alley in which Bruce’s parents were shot, implying at least some connection between the two. It’s certainly a curious sight to have Selina approaching the Wayne mansion during the day, though she apparently catches Bruce in a moment of weakness that hearkens toward his future career jumping off rooftops. Note that we see Selina taking a similar stance moments later.

I, Ivy?

We’d previously heard Poison Ivy among the characters presented in the pilot script, though here for the first time we have a confirmed sighting of the character, as played by Claire Foley. Curiously, IMDb lists the character as “Ivy Pepper,” rather than Pamela Isley. Casting made a bigger deal of Cory Michael Smith’s presence as future Riddler Edward Nygma, so we’d imagine Ivy plays a relatively small role on the series, at least for the moment.

Bad Blue Blood

Call us crazy, but we couldn't help noticing a shot toward the end of the trailer featuring Bullock raising his gun in a strangely casual way. Considering earlier in the trailer we saw Gordon giving Bullock some considerable side-eye as Mayor Aubrey James spoke out against Gotham's killers, robbers and thugs, could we see the two partners turning on one another before long? And what of Bullock's questions about Gordon ever killing a man, now that Gotham finds itself in its own war?

Well, what do you think? Does FOX's 'Gotham' look like it'll offer a fresh new take on the Batman mythology we know and love? What else caught your eye from the first full trailer. Stay tuned for the latest, and tell us what you want to see from FOX's 'Gotham' when it premieres this fall!