When Gotham returns from its midseason break next week, we’ll be seeing the introduction of another familiar character from the Batman mythos in Dr. Leslie Thompkins, who is set to be portrayed by Morena Baccarin (Firefly). During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actress has spoken about the role, and Leslie’s pairing with Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie), marking a shift from her depiction in the comic books.
“I’m a physician. I’m working at Arkham, but we’re not sticking too close to the original mythology,” states Baccarin. “We are having her team up with Jim Gordon instead of the Wayne family and Bruce. Eventually, who knows—it could go in that direction, but it hasn’t yet. She gets out [of Arkham] which is really fun and her and Jim kind of pair up and have this really great relationship. I think it’s important. Arkham is a really kind of iconic and dark and crazy world but I don’t think you want to spend too much time in there. Jim finds an ally in her, which I think is important for him at this point. He’s beaten down by the system and he’s been fighting this one-man operation to make Gotham not as corrupt. I think it’s really important that he finds that relationship in Leslie.”
Baccarin went on to describe her character, stating that: “She definitely can get down and dirty. She’s inquisitive and interested and I think wants to get her hands dirty and wants to get in there with Jim so I think it’s not completely out of the question that she has a little bit of [a vigilante] side to her. [She’s] somebody who’s very no-bullshit, speaks her mind. She’s not pulled in by the craziness, corruption of Gotham. She’d rather live in a better world [but] she’s also very unfazed by the craziness of Gotham and Arkham. She’s just one of those people who doesn’t take shit. She doesn’t really care what anybody thinks. She’s a good person. She doesn’t do anything terrible, but she’s not going to cater to stupid people, so it can be disarming but it can also be infuriating to certain people.”
Gotham returns to FOX this Monday with ‘Rogue’s Gallery’; you can watch four clips from the episode here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&list=PL18yMRIfoszH_jfuJoo8HCG1-lGjvfH2F&v=eF_xnPWgEtI
Originally published January 2, 2015. Updated December 15, 2019.
