Jada Pinkett Smith has signed on to reprise her role as crime boss Fish Mooney for upcoming season 2 episodes of Fox’s Batman prequel series, "Gotham," which returns to complete its second season on Monday, February 29.
Details on what Mooney’s return means for the series are still being kept underwraps, however.
We last saw the character in the season 1 finale episode getting pushed off the edge of a rooftop into the ocean, to what we were top assume was her death; but it was never confirmed, and we never heard from or about the character again.
It was in the spring of last year, toward the end of the first season, that the actress revealed on "Live! with Kelly and Michael" that she will, in fact, not be returning for season 2 of "Gotham," saying that she signed up for 1 year, and the year was up, so, game over! The first season order originally consisted of 16 episodes, but was later extended to 22.
Following that revelation, there was a groundswell of support for her character to return for season 2, which might have partly influenced Fox to bring her back.
As I’ve said on this blog in the past, Jada as Mooney is one of the best things about the show. The character is one that we rarely ever see black actresses be given the opportunity to play, especially on a major broadcast network. And, if only for that reason, you should give the series a look, if you aren’t already watching. Season 1 is streaming on Netflix and Hulu.
As played by Jada Pinkett Smith in "Gotham," she is quite the bad-ass, to be blunt. A sadistic gangster boss and nightclub owner, with street smarts and almost extra-sensory abilities to read people. Further, despite her diminutive figure, she’s imposing, in control, even scary, and just not one to be messed with! Ask all the white male characters on the show who are intimidated or threatened by Fish Mooney and her presence.
I did wonder if the character was originally written as a woman (let alone a black woman). My research didn’t give me an answer to that question. But I did learn that Fish Mooney is the only major character on the show that doesn’t come from the comics. She’s completely original, an invention of "Gotham’s" creative team.
And Jada seemed to be having a lot of fun with the sometimes outlandishness of the character – a captivating and intriguing mystery in a svelte box.
