J.K. Simmons’ role as Commissioner Gordon in Justice League wasn’t a huge one, at least in the version that we saw, but then, the film also may have merely served as a way to introduce his character in the DC Extended Universe, and then utilize him down the line, such as in either a solo Batman film or other pictures taking place in Gotham City that would call for Gordon. And while J.K. Simmons is very much a busy man, no doubt if you’ve seen Counterpart, which is a fantastic series, he hopes to get reacquainted with Gordon in the future.
The shifting landscape of the DC Extended Universe after Justice League is giving us the likes of Shazam!, Wonder Woman 1984, Birds of Prey, and Aquaman in just a month. And that’s just the immediate future. Beyond that, no one can say. We know that Matt Reeves is writing and directing The Batman, and everyone and their mother will tell you that he’s wiping the slate clean as far as casting goes, even though there’s nothing concrete and set in stone from Reeves himself. So where does J.K. Simmons fit into this equation?
In a recent interview with Collider, J.K. Simmons discussed a variety of subjects, such as the aforementioned Counterpart as well as his role in The Front Runner, but the conversation did turn to the DC films and he was asked if he’s aware of any movement regarding his return to playing Gordon. Is he aware of news so far?
“Nothing has changed. There are conversations going on, that I’m not going to make public. As far as I know, there’s no opportunity, in the immediate future, for me to do more Commissioner Gordon, but I continue to be optimistic that it will happen again.”
So the news is that there’s no news at the moment. Again, if The Batman were a 2019 film or if Matt Reeves had an update regarding casting, there’d probably be something to report, but as of now, again, there are other DC films coming down the pipeline first. That doesn’t mean J.K. Simmons is out of the role, as some would no doubt interpret that as, nor does it mean that Simmons is done playing the character, as he’s clearly optimistic in regards to coming back to the role. It just means that while there are conversations, as of right now, you won’t see Gordon.
And to be fair, would you have expected to see J.K. Simmons’ take on Commissioner Gordon show up in Shazam! or Wonder Woman 1984? Probably not. So time will tell when we ultimately see Simmons suiting back up to play Jim Gordon again. In the meantime, what did you think of Simmons’ performance as Gordon in Justice League? Do you hope to see more of that performance? Let us know in the comments below.
In the meantime, you can see Simmons now in The Front Runner, which is currently playing in theaters.
Source: Collider