Fox’s Gotham Casts Doran Martell As Batman Nemesis Ra’s al Ghul
In some cool news for fans of TV fantasy and science fiction, Alexander Siddig will play Batman nemesis Ra’s Al Ghul in season 3 of Fox’s Gotham.
Alexander Siddig will play Batman villain Ra’s al Ghul in Gotham. He is probably best known for his role as Dr. Bashir in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. You probably also know him as Ruben Oliver in Peaky Blinders. And oh yeah, he was poor, ailing Doran Martell in Game of Thrones.
Siddig is the first not-white actor to play the part on screen. Interestingly, I just learned that he was born in Sudan and that his entire given name is Siddig El Tahir El Fadil El Siddig El Abderahman El Mohammed Ahmed El Abdel Karim El Mahdi.
Alexander Siddig as Dr. Julian Bashir, Deep Space 9. Image via CBS Archives.
Currently, Aussie actor Matt Nable has the part of Ra’s in CW’s Arrow/Flash/Legends of Tomorrow continuum. Chris Nolan cast Liam Neeson as his Ra’s.
White actors David Warner, Dee Bradley Baker , Jason Isaacs play Ra’s in the most of the animated universe, but Giancarlo Esposito (Gus Fring in Breaking Bad) did voice R’as in the 2014’s Son of Batman.
Who is Ra’s al Ghul?
Ra’s al Ghul (Voiced by Giancarlo Esposito) in Son of Batman. Official Image via DC Comics
Long-time Batman nemesis Ra’s al Ghul is the leader of an ancient guild of highly trained assassins. Under his guidance, the league works in secret (and have done so throughout history) to bring down leaders and empires.
On the CW and the DC animated universe, Ra’s group is the League of Assassins. He will lead its offshoot, the League of Shadows, in the Fox version. (My guess is that there are some cross-licensing issues there.) I’m pretty sure both are true in some form in the comics, and you may correct me if I am wrong there.
Even if you’re not familiar with Ra’s al Ghul, he’s obviously not a white dude. The name means Demon’s or Ghoul’s Head in Arabic. (And if I can be a nerd about pronunciation, here, that should be pronounced “ROWsh,” not “Raish” or “Rahss” or “Rahzzz.”) According to the comic, Batman: Birth of the Demon, he was born 600 years ago as a nomad on the Arabian Peninsula. Yes, in some versions Ra’s is a title that has been passed on throughout the generations. That’s just an excuse for some lazy casting, so fight me.
Ra’s is immortal. His power is concentrated on the Lazarus Pit, which takes various forms in canon, but is sometimes also known as the Fountain of Youth. It’s variously located in Switzerland, the fictional Nanda Parbat, or a secret location. A dip in the pit brings the dead back to life and extends the life of the living, but it usually has an unfortunate side effect. It turns people insane with blood-lust, or just plain raving starkers.
What Will Gotham Do?
It will be interesting to see what the Gotham people do with Ra’s al Ghul. In some versions, Ra’s and the League train Batman to be Batman-y early on in his life. Perhaps that’s what Gotham will do in Season 3. I hope it’s that, instead of Ra’s battling James Gordon and the GCPD, because more Bruce, please. I am here for more David Mazouz. That kid is great!
Next: Batman: The Animated Series Card Game “Almost Got ‘Im”
Season 3 of Gotham premieres Monday, April 24 on Fox.