Jeffrey Wright, an actor with an impressively diverse career, helped anchor Matt Reeves’ The Batman as Gotham’s morally grounded lieutenant, Jim Gordon, opposite Robert Pattinson’s brooding Dark Knight. His take on Gordon was gritty and sharp, which was a perfect fit for Reeves’ noir-inspired Gotham. Now, as the upcoming The Batman Part II heads into development, Wright says he’s excited to return, but he also opened up about the backlash he faced when his casting was first announced.
Speaking with Collider, The Last of Us season 2 alum didn’t hold back when discussing the racial criticism, calling it out as both ignorant and absurd. According to the actor:
The Gordon thing, that’s another level. I guess increasingly now, I’m looking forward to getting back to it, but 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. It’s just so fucking racist and stupid.
The Basquiat actor went on to explain that the idea of freezing Gotham in the same mold it had in 1939, when Batman comics were first published, makes no sense in today’s world. 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.
Jeffrey Wright’s defense of his role comes with a strong reminder that Gotham has always been a reflection of New York City — a place that has changed and diversified massively since Batman’s earliest days. As he put it, making a modern Gotham without reflecting that reality would feel less authentic, not more.
The Emmy-winning actor also pointed out that his Gordon didn’t lose the character’s core values; what changed was the world around him. Reeves’s Gotham leaned heavily on a 1970s noir aesthetic, which paired perfectly with the nuanced performance from the HBO veteran actor. If anything, his version of Gordon reinforced the idea that the Caped Crusader works best when surrounded by allies who bring new perspectives to Gotham’s fight against corruption.
The American Fiction star feels a deep connection to Gotham’s mythology, too. Growing up a fan of the best Batman films himself, he emphasized that these stories belong to everyone, and the fact that audiences around the world can see themselves reflected in Gotham’s heroes and villains is part of what keeps the franchise alive, going on nearly 90 years now.
The Batman Part II isn’t on the 2025 movie schedule, but the upcoming superhero movie is locked in for October 10, 2027. Wright will once again don Gordon’s trench coat, and he’s even teased interest in seeing James Gordon Jr., his character’s troubled son, make the leap to Reeves’ big-screen saga. That would be an exciting choice, as Gordon Jr. is a deep-cut villain who has yet to receive attention in live-action.
For now, Jeffrey Wright’s comments make his stance pretty clear: he believes Gotham, like the world it reflects, has no place for racism.