The Batman's New Riddler Origin Supports Live-Action Hush Theory
New revelations regarding Riddler's The Batman origin story fuel theories that Paul Dano is actually playing a big screen version of Hush. Robert Pattinson's Bruce Wayne will face a curated selection of rogues in his movie debut, but despite the presence of veteran crooks Penguin and Carmine Falcone, Riddler is clearly filling the main antagonist position. Played by Paul Dano, Riddler (real name Edward Nashton) is on a crusade to bring down Gotham's corrupt elite, one high-profile corpse at a time. Riddler takes special interest in Bruce Wayne, leaving a series of cryptic messages that Gotham's billionaire vigilante will feverishly attempt to decode.
There's little doubt Paul Dano is playing Riddler in The Batman. His green outfit is adorned with question marks, he leaves puzzling clues at crime scenes, and Pattinson refers to Riddler by name in The Batman's trailer footage. Nevertheless, DC fans have pointed out several curious parallels to Hush — a villain created by Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee in 2003. Nashton's face mask is essentially a green version of Hush's famous bandages, and Dano's character is notably more direct in his violence than typical depictions of the Emerald Enigma — an approach Hush would approve of.
Related: The Batman: Riddler's Arrest Is All Part Of His Plan — Theory Explained
Fresh details about Riddler's The Batman origin story might've just cemented the movie's Hush connection. Before The Batman is a prequel tie-in novel to Matt Reeves' DC movie, and reveals Edward Nashton knew Bruce Wayne during their high-school years. This element of Riddler's origin isn't guaranteed to carry over to live-action, but would certainly explain why Nashton knows so much about the Wayne family. Dano and Pattinson's
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