Why Did the Riddler Turn Himself In?
Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for The Batman
The Big Picture
- Paul Dano's portrayal of the Riddler in The Batman is the best part of the movie, presenting a dark and gritty version of the character as a gruesome serial killer seeking to punish Gotham City.
- The Riddler's motive stems from his heartbreaking upbringing and resentment towards the wealthy class, particularly Bruce Wayne. He targets those involved in embezzling money meant for the orphanage where he grew up.
- By turning himself in, the Riddler seeks to become a martyr and inspire others to continue his mission of seeking justice against the rich and powerful. His arrest also leads to a fateful encounter with Batman, forcing Bruce Wayne to reevaluate his approach to crime-fighting.
While there's a lot to love in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, Paul Dano’s take on the Riddler remains the movie's best part. The movie presents a dark and gritty version of Gotham City where Batman (Robert Pattinson) is still finding his footing while chasing common criminals. So, instead of a Riddler that comes up with farfetched plans to best the World's Greatest Detective wits, Dano's version of the villain is a gruesome serial killer that's on a warpath to punish the entire city for its crimes.
It's a terrifying performance that proves Gotham City's biggest villain is social inequality, and helps Batman to understand there are problems you cannot just punch away. Yet, the most mysterious misstep in the Riddler's intricate plan for Gotham City is his willful arrest by the police. For most of The Batman’s runtime, the Riddler is one step ahead of the Dark Knight, but the villain turns himself in to the police right before the film’s explosive third act. Still, when he shares his location with Gotham's police officer, he waits for law enforcers with a smile on his face. It's obvious the Riddler is being arrested on purpose, but we can't help to wonder why.
What Part Does Paul Dano's the Riddler Play in 'The Batman'?
As Bruce Wayne puts the clues the Riddler left behind together, he learns of a giant conspiracy involving his parents. Thomas Wayne (Luke Roberts) was murdered when he ran for Mayor of Gotham City, vowing to take care of the poor and fight against social inequality. After Thomas and Martha’s (Stella Stocker) brutal death, part of their fortune was promised to help Gotham’s orphanage. The money, however, was embezzled with the help of mobster Carmine Falcone (John Turturro).
After the Waynes were murdered, Bruce became an orphan and was on the cover of every newspaper. All over Gotham, people pitied the poor orphan in his marble tower, where his father’s fortune at least prevented him from suffering from any material needs. Meanwhile, the Riddler, real name Edward Nashton, grew up in an overcrowded orphanage, watching babies die of cold and hunger for the lack of resources. It’s no wonder the Riddler resents the wealthy class of Gotham City, especially Bruce Wayne.
The Riddler’s Isolated Upbringing Contributed to His Villainy
While hate alone is not enough to turn someone into a meticulous serial killer, the Riddler was inspired by Batman, a vigilante who commits crimes and defies the police forces while searching for vengeance and cleaning the streets of Gotham City. Just like Batman, Riddler decided he is gifted enough to do the same, which leads him to target everyone that was involved in the embezzlement of the orphanage money. After decades of feeling worthless and abandoned, the Riddler has become a misanthropist. The world sees him as a “nobody,” so his plan is also to allow “nobodies” everywhere to rise and claim their place in history. That’s why in The Batman, the villain has a legion of fans who help him to plan the ultimate attack on Gotham by planting bombs to flood the city and organizing a mass shooting during an electoral debate.
In short, years of neglect turned the Riddler into a bitter and angry young man. His impressive intellect also fed his sense of injustice since the world ignored him while he deserved more than the lazy and corrupt wealthy class of Gotham City offered him. Finally, Batman's crusade for revenge inspired the Riddler to come out of the shadows and deliver what he sees as a fair punishment for the greedy people who feed on the misery of others. Riddler’s motivations are perfectly understandable, even if his methods are not defensible. But for his plan to work, he needs to inspire people like him to take up arms and continue his work. For that, the Riddler needs to become a martyr.
After killing everyone on his list, the Riddler tips the police off about his location and patiently waits to be arrested. While working in the shadows, the villain proved to be a deadly adversary capable of achieving great things. After his main work was done, the Riddler had to turn himself in so that his story would become famous, and he would be forever a martyr to frustrated people everywhere. As a master strategist, the Riddler knows his legion of followers need to see him sacrificing himself for the cause. So, by turning himself in, the Riddler proves not even he is above what he calls justice.
The Riddler Wanted to Team Up With Batman
Getting arrested also gives the Riddler the rare opportunity to meet Batman, the man who inspired him to hunt down and kill the wealthy people of Gotham. This fateful encounter forces Bruce to realize the errors of his way, as being a symbol of vengeance and inspiring fear only feeds a never-ending cycle of violence. But for the Riddler, he thought of that as the opportunity to team up with Batman so that they could work together to cleanse Gotham and build a new legacy for the city.
Batman thinks he’s cleaning the city by beating up lowly criminals at night. The Riddler shows it is more effective to aim for the powerful and the rich, the true culprits of social inequality, which in turn leads more people to a life of crime. For Riddler’s message to spread and inspire more people, he had to be arrested. And even if Batman stops the mass shooting enacted by Riddler’s followers, the villain indeed changes Gotham City forever. As a notorious criminal locked away in Arkham Asylum, his story will become an interesting tale for people to tell over and over again. And the bombs that exploded and caused the city to flood will be forever a testament to what sheer will can achieve. While the Riddler didn’t get to team up with Batman as he dreamed about, he will keep inspiring lost and lonely people to become vengeance for many years to come.
Fortunately, Riddler’s plan had some positive side effects, as Bruce realizes he cannot embrace the darkness and expect it to change the world positively. Instead, Batman needs to become a symbol of hope. And since Reeves already promised the sequel to The Batman would remain focused on Bruce’s character growth, we might see a version of The Dark Knight like no other in the near future. As for the Riddler, the door remains open for his return in a new chapter of Reeves' Gotham universe. Despite the upcoming reboot of the DC Universe, Reeves will keep working on The Batman trilogy and spinoff TV shows. The next project on his list is a series focused on Colin Farrell's Penguin. Hopefully, we'll soon learn more about what happens with the Riddler in Arkham Asylum.
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