J.K. Simmons isn't sure when he'll return as one of Batman's greatest allies, Commissioner Gordon, in the DCEU. The Oscar winning actor joined the Warner Bros. movie universe in 2017's Justice League. Gordon's role in the movie was very brief. He did offer some important exposition and get to meet the Justice League, but that's about it. Most of Simmons' role in the crossover film appears to have been to set up future appearances in the cinematic universe.
Those future appearances may never happen. While Simmons is ready to return to the role of Gotham's police commissioner, the DCEU might not have a place for him. There are rumors that Matt Reeves' The Batman will be more of a prequel Dark Knight story than a sequel to Justice League, requiring a younger actor than Ben Affleck to play Batman. This presumably means that Gordon, if he does appear, will also be recast. Even if Simmons doesn't return as Gordon for The Batman, the actor is hopeful that he will appear at some point. It just doesn't seem to be any time soon.
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In an interview with Collider, Simmons was asked if anything has changed in regards to his role as Commissioner Gordon. At the time of Justice League's release, the actor was uncertain if there was a future for his Gordon. Simmons explained:
Nothing has changed. There are conversations going on, that I’m not going to make public. As far as I know, there’s no opportunity, in the immediate future, for me to do more Commissioner Gordon, but I continue to be optimistic that it will happen again.
Simmons' reveal is a disappointing, if not particularly surprising piece of information. There's very little about his corner of the DC Comics' cinematic universe that is confirmed, so naturally Gordon falls into that vague state. After all, there are reportedly no plans for Henry Cavill's Superman or Ben Affleck's Batman to appear in any of the upcoming DCEU movies. In fact, based on the slate of movies currently in production, not just those that are "in development," the DCEU appears to be moving far away from their former pillars of Batman and Superman. Instead the focus is on Wonder Woman and less mainstream characters like Aquaman and the Birds of Prey.
This is pure speculation, but if there is a chance for Simmons to appear again in the DCEU the odds are better that it will be with Birds of Prey and its lengthy title rather than another movie starring Batman. It's true that since Batman has been making appearances in live-action, Commissioner Gordon has been an integral character to his story, especially in The Dark Knight Trilogy. Gordon is also the father of the most famous Batgirl, Barbara Gordon. While Barbara's Batgirl isn't expected to appear at all in the Harley Quinn spinoff, she is a founding member of the Birds of Prey group in the comics. The only real hang-up is that Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) is gearing up for production and aiming for a 2020 release, but in Simmons' own words there's no "immediate" plans for his Commissioner Gordon to appear. It is possible that with the fourth Batgirl from the comics Cassandra Cain cast in Birds of Prey, the DCEU might ignore Barbara Gordon (and her father) altogether - at least, for now.
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Source: Collider
