Alongside the DC Universe, aka the DCU, Matt Reeves’ The Batman and its spin-off series The Penguin have successfully created their own side story regarding Batman and related characters. One of these characters, Jim Gordon, was played by Jeffrey Wright – though there was some backlash given his ethnicity. Now Jeffrey Wright is throwing shade at those who complained about his involvement in The Batman, or its upcoming sequel The Batman: Part II, calling them “racist.”
Wright has proven himself to be an excellent choice to portray Jim Gordon, especially as his performance was praised by fans following the release of The Batman, and everyone seems eager to see him return to the role in The Batman: Part II. Unfortunately, trolls are aplenty these days, and some were quick to target him for receiving the role of Jim Gordon even before they saw his performance.
Here’s what he shared while speaking with Collider on that front:
“I really find it fascinating the ways in which there’s such a conversation, and I think even more of a conversation now, about Black characters in these roles,” Wright began.
“It’s just so f—–g racist and stupid,” he continued. “It’s just so blind in a way that I find revealing to not recognize that the evolution of these films reflects the evolution of society, that somehow it’s defiling this franchise not to keep it grounded in the cultural reality of 1939 when the comic books were first published. It’s just the dumbest thing. It’s absent all logic.”
Furthermore, after comparing the film’s Gotham to “’70s noir” and “’70s noir New York,” he adds that this only justifies the diversity we see in the film:
“Obviously, New York City is the template for Gotham, and if you look around New York City in the ’70s, or if you look around New York City, of course, today, it’s a multicultural place. So, any Gotham within a contemporary film in the Batman series that’s going to be authentic has to be reflective of a modern American metropolis. That’s just what it is.”
Wright also simply believes that comic book characters can evolve over time, referring to Batman comic book creators Bob Kane and Bill Finger:
“Bob Kane and Bill Finger are two Jewish guys up in the Bronx, imagining heroes and villains in a city that looked like the city around them at the time, but I think what they imagined was open-ended,” Wright said. “I think that the success and the longevity of these stories and characters are owing to the openness of their imaginations and what they created.”
Fortunately, the success of The Batman and The Penguin proved that these decisions regarding Jeffrey Wright and other diverse actors have paid off, and fans are excited to see what else will be in store when The Batman: Part II hits theaters in 2027. Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional updates as we have them.