How Butch Becomes Solomon Grundy On ‘Gotham’ Revealed

The mob enforcer known as Butch Gilzean suffered a fatal injury in the third season finale of Gotham, but the character will shift into a new and familiar role when the show returns.

After Barbara Kean shot him in the head and left him for dead, Butch was taken to Gotham General Hospital where doctors revealed that he was barely alive. They also revealed his real name to be Cyrus Gold, which DC Comics fans likely recognize as the real name of supervillain Solomon Grundy.

Butch will appear as Grundy when Gotham returns for Season Four, but don’t expect to see him right away.

“He’s been in a vegetative state at Gotham General and so in order to clear up space for more beds, the administrators at the hospital have him dumped in Slaughter Swamp, as one does in Gotham,” executive producer John Stephens told EW. “So he emerges reborn out of Slaughter Swamp as the character we know as Solomon Grundy.”

This lines up with the character’s comic book origin, though the folklore monster’s creation was typically dated to the late 1800s.

Stephens also revealed that Grundy will first come into contact with Edward Nygma, and, considering all of his memories have been wiped thanks to having been shot in the brain, the two will become allies.

Stephens said “we begin the story of a very unlikely friendship between these two who are sworn enemies but now, all of a sudden in season 4, are best friends as they move through Gotham.”

So one of them has a penchant for rhyming and the other for riddles. Sounds like a match made in Gotham.

The show will return to FOX for its fourth season on Thursday, September 21st.