Gil Colson was the District Attorney of Gotham City and associate of Carmine Falcone. One of many corrupt officials on the mobster's payroll, he was also involved in the takedown of Sal Maroni. Colson would later be targeted by the Riddler due to his association with both Falcone's organization and the case.
Biography[]
Elected as Gotham City's district attorney, Gil Colson was among the high-ranking officials on Carmine Falcone's payroll. Through the Gotham Renewal Corporation, he obtained $10,000 per month without oversight. Along with Mayor Don Mitchell Jr. and Police Commissioner Pete Savage, Colson was among the officials who oversaw the Maroni Drug Bust, using information provided to them by Falcone to arrest rival mobster Salvatore Maroni. This helped their careers as a result, along with Falcone taking over Drops production from his rival. It is heavily implied he took additional payments from other criminals outside of the Falcone Crime Syndicate.
The Batman[]
Encounter with Kyle[]
After the murder of Savage by the Riddler, Colson and his coworkers visited the 44 Below to take their minds off a potential leak by the serial killer. Whilst there, he became intoxicated through the use of both alcohol and Drops. During it, he noticed waitress Selina Kyle. Taking an interest in her, Colson invited her to join him and his coworkers, not knowing she was wearing recording equipment feeding information to Batman. Taking advantage of his state, Kyle talked to him about his work and operations. After she took interest in his mention of a "rat", Colson informed her of the use of an informant in the Maroni Bust but did not identify them as Falcone. He also told her about how if Riddler was aware, the city's political infrastructure was in jeopardy. Before Colson could continue, Carla Diaz stopped him, telling him that they'd end up like "that Russian girl" if he continued.
Kidnapping[]
Leaving the club shortly after Selina, Colson noticed her trying to hail a cab and offered to drive her home. However, she managed to hail one, prompting him to also leave the area. After getting into his car, Colson noticed a headrest had been removed from his seat, leading him to discover the Riddler hiding in the back of the vehicle. The killer then knocked Colson unconscious with a blunt weapon, using his state to gag him and place a bomb collar around his neck. Colson regained consciousness as the device was primed.
Attack on Don Mitchell Jr.'s Funeral[]
It is unclear what happened to Colson after his disappearance, but he was attached with a phone and a message for Batman. Threatening to kill him, Riddler told him to attack Michell's funeral at Gotham City Hall. Wanting to survive, Colson did as he demanded and drove his vandalized car through the memorial, though it appears no one was hurt by his actions. As GCPD surrounded the crashed vehicle, Colson got out of his car and tried to show them his situation. Due to the potential danger of his bomb collar, many officers and civilians were evacuated from the area.
Death[]
After hours of waiting, Colson was finally approached by Batman, who ungagged him and learned of his situation. He remained uninvolved in the conversation with Riddler and the vigilante. When the serial killer began livestreaming the event, Colson lost his composure and begged for his release, leading Riddler to scream at him. As the killer calmed down, he offered to spare Colson and give him the combination for his bomb collar if was able to win his "game". Accepting, Colson was forced to answer three riddles indicating the extent of his corruption within the collar's two-minute timer.
With Batman's help, he was able to answer the first two, both of which revealed he'd accepted bribes to turn away cases related to organized crime. However, after learning that the third demanded the identity of the informant in the Maroni case, Colson refused to identify them as Falcone, worrying about retribution from the mobster. Though Batman attempted to get him to answer, Colson refused, indicating the entire political system was corrupt. The DA was killed when his bomb collar's timer ran out and detonated, begging Batman to rescue him.
Behind the Scenes[]
A newspaper article with Colson
Though Colson is an original character in the film, he shares similarities with various corrupt officials in Gotham, including Vernon Fields from The Long Halloween. His name is also similar to Chuck Colson, an attorney and President Richard Nixion's political advisor involved in the Watergate scandal.
Colson's actor, Peter Sarsgaard, described the character as a politician who lies and is distasteful.[1] Colson's forced participation in a crime and death via a homemade bomb collar was inspired by Brian Wells, who robbed a bank with a similar device around his neck and killed shortly after being apprehended by police.[2]
Trivia[]
- Colson's actor, Peter Sarsgaard, is married to actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, who portrayed Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight. In somewhat of a coincidence, both their characters die in explosions caused by their films villains (Riddler and Joker, respectively).
- In the early stages of The Batman's production, it was speculated that Colson was intended to be Harvey Dent, with the character reimagined as a corrupt attorney (similar to the New 52 incarnation).[1] However, these were later disproven during filming and in press material.