Gotham City

"It's not just a call. It's a warning." ―Batman

WARNING! This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS for The Batman. Anything that you read beyond this is on you.

"Gotham City has been in such a decline since your parents died―especially your father. He loved this city. And I guess you do, too. Maybe it needs something―or someone―to shake things up."

―Alfred Pennyworth to Bruce Wayne^[src]

Gotham City is a bustling dark, Gothic-Punk city located in New York. In addition to being the home and main base of operations for the mysterious urban legend known as the Batman, Gotham is also rife with corruption, poverty, vermin infestations, pollution, and numerous crime waves.^[1] The city's motto is "Sic Parvis Magna."^[2]

History[]

Gotham City was founded sometime in 1724 by a little known architect named William Gotham though some sources seem to discredit this account.

Description, Society, and Culture[]

Gotham is a gloomy city of grey nothingness riddled to its very core with crime and corruption. It can often be seen pouring heavy rain day and night and with an eerie fog or mist usually floating in the air.

Known individuals[]

Known residents[]

Current residents[]

Incarcerated residents[]

Layout[]

Locales[]

Organizations[]

Gotham Organized Crime[]

"In Gotham City, the roots of organized crime run very deep."

―Alfred Pennyworth^[src]

Trivia[]

The Batman delves into the criminal underbelly of Gotham City through a noir-style storytelling and highlights themes of corruption that runs rampant within the city's government and police department. The movie used London, Glasgow, Liverpool, and Chicago as filming locations for Gotham City. Although filmed in various locations, Reeves modeled Gotham on New York City. A towering skyscraper similar to the Empire State Building looms over Gotham with an emblazoned sign that reads "Gotham Empire". A busy, commercial intersection called "Gotham Square" is seen in several shots and resembles Times Square with its bright signs and giant digital screens. The film's concluding sequence, while filmed at London's 02 Arena, is called "Gotham Square Garden", taking its naming convention from New York's Madison Square Garden. Various members of the Gotham City Police Department and the city's mobsters speak with East Coast accents similar to those of New York and New Jersey.

Behind the scenes[]

In the DC comics, Gotham City is the home of the hero known as Batman. Gotham City is located in the Northeastern United States, in close proximity to Metropolis, with the majority of DC comics references placing Gotham City specifically in New Jersey.
In real life, "Gotham" is a nickname that writer Washington Irving attached to New York on November 11, 1807, referencing a village in England inhabited, according to folklore, by people who feigned madness and were branded as true fools.^[3]
- Batman creator Bill Finger took inspiration from that nickname^[3] and New York City itself provided the basic visuals for the fictional city.

References[]

↑ Reeves, Matt & Craig, Peter (writers); Reeves, Matt & Clark, Dylan (producers); & Reeves, Matt (director) (March 4, 2022). The Batman.
↑ Translates to "Greatness from Small Beginnings"
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 "The real Gotham: The village behind the Batman stories" - BBC News

External Links[]

Gotham City on DC Database
Gotham City on Wikipedia

[1] Reeves, Matt & Craig, Peter (writers); Reeves, Matt & Clark, Dylan (producers); & Reeves, Matt (director) (March 4, 2022). The Batman.

[2] Translates to "Greatness from Small Beginnings"

[Gotham_origin-3] 3.0 ^3.1 "The real Gotham: The village behind the Batman stories" - BBC News

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