Gotham Producer Hints Jerome Might Still Be The Real Joker

Contains potential spoilers for Gotham

Who's laughing now?

Although many Gotham fans consider Jerome (Cameron Monaghan) to be the best bet to eventually become the Joker, that theory took a hit when the character was killed in Season 2. But executive producer Ken Woodruff recently revealed that we haven't heard the last of Jerome, and reports confirmed that Monaghan will appear in Season 3.

In an interview with /Film, Woodruff said Jerome's death was included to throw off speculation that he would become the iconic DC Comics character. "Jerome was always supposed to be the inspiration for the Joker," he said. "Maybe he'll go through an evolution that'll end up becoming the actual Joker that we all know. The whole idea was that he was supposed to be the inspiration for it."

But fans probably shouldn't look for Jerome in the first few episodes of Season 3. A few weeks back, Woodruff told TV Guide the early episodes will open with the Mad Hatter (Benedict Samuel) as the primary villain. "We are absolutely planning in Season 3–but primarily in the mid to second half of Season 3–to delve back into the mythology of the Joker, and characters that may or may not be the Joker, but more likely characters that are an amalgamation of what we'll come to know as the Joker," he said.

While Woodruff hints that Jerome might only have provided the inspiration for another character to assume the Joker mantle, the producer's new statements leave the door open for Jerome to actually become the character we all know and sometimes love.

We'll learn more when Gotham premieres Sept. 19. Meanwhile, we know Harley Quinn might already be on the show.