Who Plays District Attorney Gil Colson In The Batman?

Though it has only been a couple of years since the project was announced, Matt Reeves' "The Batman" still feels a long time in the making. Part of that is surely because of the unforeseeable pandemic delays that dogged its production along with every other film and television project that dared to shoot in the hell year that was 2020. Even after production wrapped, the pandemic continued to wreak havoc on the film's release, with Warner Bros. opting to push the release of "The Batman" almost a full year from its original release date.

Thankfully, premiere day for "The Batman" is almost here. And aside from the thrill of getting a fresh take on the well-trodden Batman saga, the biggest reason most of us have been dying to get eyes on "The Batman" is because we want to see Robert Pattinson doing his Batman thing. In fact, perhaps more than any other factor, the casting of "The Batman" has made it one of the most intriguing superhero flicks of the last few years, with screen heavies like Jeffrey Wright, Zoe Kravitz, Paul Dano, Colin Farrell, and John Turturro lining up opposite Pattinson for key roles in the film.

You can count the actor portraying Gotham District Attorney Gil Colson among those heavies, by the way. Because in case you hadn't heard, he's being played by one of the finest — if frustratingly underrated — actors of the modern era. Here's who's playing DA Colson in "The Batman."

That underrated actor is Mr. Peter Sarsgaard, who has been delivering electrifying performances in film and television projects of all shapes and sizes since the mid-90s. Some of Sarsgaard's career highlights include "Boys Don't Cry," "Garden State," "Orphan," "Jarhead," and "Experimenter." Most recently, the actor was seen stealing scenes in the hit Hulu mini-series "Dopesick," and Netflix's Oscar-nominee "The Lost Daughter." As you can tell from those titles, Sarsgaard has a clear affinity for the indie realm. He's no stranger to tentpole fare, however, having also appeared as the villainous Hector Hammond opposite Ryan Reynolds in the infamous 2011 superhero flick "Green Lantern."

Hopefully Sarsgaard's second DC adaptation will go a little better than his first. Given the level of talent involved in "The Batman," that seems far more likely than not. As for the character Sarsgaard is playing in the new film, it's not a different version of Harvey Dent aka Two-Face, as many speculated upon his casting: Rather, Gil Colson is a brand-new character to the world of Batman. As such, not much is known of the new Gotham DA just yet. But given his predicament in a recently released clip from "The Batman," Colson is clearly not operating on the level, and will incur the wrath of Paul Dano's Riddler. 

Whatever the case, Sarsgaard's presence in the already impressive cast of "The Batman" only helps to elevate it above mere superhero spectacle. And we're as excited as anyone to see what he, and the rest of that cast, bring to the Bat-verse.