Kait Mae

When The CW’s Gotham Knights was announced and premiered the same year as the game of the same name, it left a few fans questioning why they were so different. Despite both starting with Batman dying, everything else was completely different. And while some didn’t love the game, it’s universally accepted the show was more lackluster. In my opinion, instead of creating a new story with new characters, the show could have thrived by adapting the game’s rich narrative. Here’s how I would have done it.

SPOILER ALERT: If you haven’t watched the show or played the game, I will touch on plot points in both.

What Was The Game About?

The game followed Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Barbara Gordon, and Tim Drake working together to protect Gotham after Bruce’s death. They fight crime, specifically the Court of Owls and the League of Assassins, throughout Gotham. Meanwhile, they also have to deal with Harley Quinn, Mr. Freeze, and Clayface.

It’s a game that was directly inspired by the Batman: Gotham Knights comic series. Though the story itself fell kind of flat for some, others loved it. It’s also completely unrelated to other Batman games.

Most of the criticism was the mission objectives, combat, and side activities – but overall, it is a fun game if you’re looking for something to do without looking for something to dislike.

Want to see what other shows I’d love to fix? Start here.

What Was The Show About?

Similar to the game, it follows directly after Bruce’s death and sees the main antagonist as the Court of Owls. But that’s where the similarities end.

In the show, we don’t see Dick, Jason, Barbara, or Tim. In fact, we have a new Robin that’s not commonly talked about in the comic fandom – Carrie Kelley. We do get Stephanie Brown – but she’s just a coder that’s friends with Bruce’s adopted son, Turner – another character created specifically for the show.

Nearly every major character has comic roots, but they felt off. There was a sharp disconnect between the characters in the comics and what we got in the show.

The plot itself wasn’t horrible – but the character arcs, relationships, and dialogue all lacked so much. It was cancelled after one season – and I don’t think anyone was surprised.

That said, the cast was good in what it was – please don’t go hating on them because they were just playing the roles with what they were given.

What Would I Do?

If I were given the opportunity to do a Gotham Knights television show, I’d try to stick closer to what the game did while following more of the comic run’s plot.

But let’s say, hypothetically, I’m given the chance to adapt the game into a television show – I’m cutting it into two seasons. The first would be focused on the Court of Owls’ plotline from the game, expanding it and flushing it out a bit more. And the second season would follow the League of Assassins’ storyline that starts with Kane’s assassination.

And of course, I’d do a live-action show – preferably on MAX. I’m not dead set on that, but I do know I’d stay away from The CW.

You know what I wouldn’t move from The CW? Legacies – which I’ve also written about. Check it out here.

Who’s In This Gotham?

Since I’m focusing on a hypothetical casting of the game, I’m casting characters that showed up in the game.

First up, let’s get Bruce and Ra’s out of the way since they’re the ones that started this all. For Bruce, I’m going the obvious route of Jensen Ackles. It’s a popular fan cast that I wish we’d get in live-action already. As for Ra’s al Ghul, I’m going with Ghassan Massoud.

Moving on to the Knights, I decided to not cast Nightwing because I want someone of Roma descent since it’s alluded to in the game.

As for the other three, I chose Damian Romeo for Jason Todd, Sloane Siegel for Tim Drake, and Jane Levy for Barbara Gordon. Damian reminds me of Jason Todd from the Wayne Family Adventures, while Jane just gives what the game’s version of Barbara is also giving. As for Sloane, he’s the game character’s actor – he was perfect, so why change anything?

Moving on, we have Alfred Pennyworth and Lucius Fox. For Alfred, I’m going with Charles Dance because he plays a distinguished Englishman so well. As for Lucius, Courtney B. Vance is an amazing actor who I know will do amazingly in this role.

Let’s cover the Kanes next – CEO of Kane Industries, Jacob, and Commissioner of the Gotham Police, Catherine. I actually decided to keep the same actress as the game’s Catherine, Liz Burnette. But with Jacob, I chose Christoph Waltz because of his performance in Most Dangerous Game.

Let’s move on to the other villains. First up, for Talia al Ghul, I’m choosing Zehra Fazal. She’s more commonly known for her work as a voice actress, but she would be amazing as Talia.

As for Harley Quinn, I wanted a Jewish actress who I think could play a crazed villain. For her, I chose Sara Paxton.

Moving on to Mr. Freeze, Mark Strong is the only person I could see in this role in this hypothetical adaptation. His range of roles has already shown he could handle this role easily.

For Clayface, we only see him in a clay monster form, so I just needed to find his voice. And the perfect voice for him in this project is Andy Serkis’s. This is the only casting I won’t take any criticism on.

With Penguin, I will admit I love the current Oswald Cobblepot in MAX’s The Penguin. But this isn’t connected to that show, so I’m recasting. For this version of Oswald, I’m going with Joaquin Phoenix – if you’ve seen his roles outside of Joker, you understand why.

For his mother, Constance, I needed someone who could play evil grandmother while still looking like a kind woman. So, iconic actress Sheila Hancock is my pick.

Moving on to two allies in Gotham, we have Detective Renee Montoya and first responder Jada Thompkins. For Renee, I went a more comedic route and chose Stephanie Beatriz – yes, because of her role in Brooklyn Nine-Nine. As for Jada, I’m choosing Paulina Gaitan – I just think she’d embody this role well.