Of all the teenage heroes that assembled to fill the void left by Batman's sudden death at the beginning of Gotham Knights, the most experienced and capable of them is Carrie Kelley. Played by Navia Robinson, Carrie has secretly fought crime alongside Batman as the Teen Wonder Robin while attending high school in Gotham City. With Bruce Wayne's shadowy double life now exposed in the wake of his murder, Carrie teams up with his adopted son Turner Hayes and his new friends as they seek to clear their names and confront the Court of Owls.
In an exclusive interview with CBR, Gotham Knights star Navia Robinson talked about taking on the superhero mantle of Robin, shared how she developed her dynamic with the rest of the main cast and crew, and teases what fans can expect as Gotham Knights continues its inaugural season.
CBR: Navia, you get to bring Carrie Kelley to live-action for the first time. How was it playing her in Gotham Knights?
Navia Robinson: I think my favorite thing about this character is her appearance in the Frank Miller comics. Those are some of the most seminal DC Comics. To be able to be a part of that means a lot to me. It's great to be able to do a completely new interpretation of her. It was amazing to take some notes and characteristics from the [other] interpretations and take that in, but I ultimately wanted to let that all go.
What was also exciting for me was to take cues from other Robins as well. I was trying to find the through line between all of them, which was difficult because there are these drastically different versions. I was trying to find the characteristics that they all shared. For me, it was commitment, passion and, in my Robins, I think there’s this balance between wisdom and naïveté. I found that interesting, and thought that would be an important part of my character. Carrie Kelley is [a] 15-year-old high school student still trying to find out who she is.
There's a little bit of timidity there. She's trying to interact with older teenagers and personalities, and trying to reel them in. She's also wise and very confident in her fighting capabilities and the more experienced than the rest of them. Striking that balance is really fun to me. Carrie Kelley and her warmth versus Robin and her mature strength, was a fun contrast to play.
Was there any specific line in the character description or script that you gravitated towards to help you build your performance?
She was originally described as [being] "plucky as hell," which I thought was funny and exciting. [Laughs] I don’t think I've ever played a character that was described as enthusiastic or particularly warm, so I really liked that. My original audition was worlds different from the character that ultimately ended up on-screen because the environment influences the decisions you make in a vacuum during a self-tape. [Laughs]
My first self-tape is a lot more energetic. Maybe [I took] cues from my past sitcom work. I got further along in the audition process, and they emphasized to me that this was going to be a pretty intensive and grounded Gotham, and I was like "Cool, cool, cool. I'll take that and reel it in."
Carrie and Turner Hayes each got to know a part of Bruce Wayne that the other never will. Turner got to know him as a dad and Carrie got to know Batman, so there's some jealousy there. How was it working on that dynamic with Oscar Morgan?
I think that's an interesting part of the dynamic between us two. It's pictured from the very first episode that Carrie is jealous of Turner and [vice-versa]. They each hold two different sides of him and between both of them, have a whole picture of who [Bruce Wayne] was. They have a push-and-pull throughout this whole season but at some point it's learned that they're much stronger, more knowledgeable, and capable of conquering what's in front of them when they combine the knowledge that each of them hold.
For all Carrie's superhero work, I love those passing lines where she's saying she's still preparing for a calculus test. For all the high stakes, she's still very much in high school.
I liked those lines because they reminded me of the depictions that I’ve seen of her [that feel] very comic-booky. There’s no way that she’s doing all of this yet there are a few lines where she articulates that she’ll have a calculus test later that she has to do, and I think they’re very funny. In [Episode 5], she has to confront this balance between going to school and trying to be a vigilante. That comes and smacks her in the face, that accountability with her mom and schoolwork. You see all these little offhand jokes come to a head at that point.
How is working with the Robin costume? Do you remember getting fitted for it for the first time?
My very first introduction to the set was going straight to a costume fitting from the airport. It was like being dropped into the environment immediately and it was very exciting. I had never been a project that required so much thought about costumes. I got there, and there were 15 women spiraling around me. There were two people in charge of the construction of the leather boots that they're making by hand. It was incredible. The amount of story that they invigorate into [our] costumes. They wanted it to be black with green gradients.
Ultimately, the costume changes from the pilot and the rest of the season. It becomes much more scrappy, which I like. Every time I put on this leather burgundy jacket that I wear, which is supposed to be a nod to Robin's [signature] red, it changed the way that I stood. I have these things that make me feel tactical that are not about presentation and instead are about practicality. That definitely affects the way that you stand and interact, and it’s super helpful.
How about the stunt work and capturing the physical side of your performance, especially when you're working with a director like America Young who is a stunt performer herself?
I'm so glad you brought up America's name. We love America, she's so great. The stunt work is a huge part of the character. There was a certain point when I was training with our stunt coordinator David Morizot, I was like, "This roundhouse kick won't be perfect, but I can promise you I'll bring the attitude and disposition that hopefully sells that I can do it." [Laughs]
That was a big part of the stunt work, simply believing that you can do it. If you come in with skepticism thinking you might not be able to do something the perfect way, you might not be able to sell it. You just want to make sure you're performing with confidence and following through. America is so cool, and it was great for her to come through, but we didn't have any stunt work together!
I had spoken with her about Gotham Knights, the video game, where she plays Batgirl.
When I was first going out for this character, they [didn't] tell [me] who [I was] really auditioning for, so my character's codename was "Jenny." [I] thought that it was Batgirl, but I was Carrie Kelley. Still, that was another parallel between me and America, and America and Gotham Knights, the video game. [Laughs]
Olivia Rose Keegan described the cast of Gotham Knights becoming a family and having dinners together. Do you remember coming to set and forming that rapport with the other Knights?
Absolutely! Olivia was the first Knight that I met. I met her in the lobby of the apartment she was staying in, and immediately I was like, "This is going to be so fun!" She's so lovely ands warm. Within the first five seconds, I was like, "Oh yeah, you're the Joker's daughter."
It was really fun and inspires you when you feel like you're going to be able to play off the actors you're with. We had dinners, I met everybody else, and you see their individuality as people. It's lovely to be able to pick up on what makes everybody so great [when] playing their characters [after] meeting them, which we did.
Episode 3 is directed by Lauren Petzke. How was it having her behind the camera?
I love Lauren. She's great, and has the ability to be super pragmatic but knows when she needs to take a moment with me as an actor and get a little quiet to figure something out. She's [able to] keep up the kinetic energy which is amazing. There are some emotional beats in this episode that were really important that she nailed and some structural action sequences that she also nailed. It was amazing, and I think it's the episode where you get to see the most of Carrie and all of her multitudes.
If anyone has the most friction among the Knights, it's Carrie and Duela. How was it figuring out that dynamic with Olivia?
It's my favorite dynamic of the show. It's amazing what the writers did, having us work together. Duela represents people's most reckless or bad instincts and I think Carrie represents people's most optimistic and hopeful instincts. Of course, they [have] conflict because of that, but they ultimately learn that both sides are very complicated, and they overlap in more ways than they might anticipate. Though they look and behave very differently externally -- internally, I think there's a kinship and understanding there of passion and motivation which is why they always rail against each other so hard. [Laughs]
We're having this conversation fresh off reports that viewership for Gotham Knights has increased since its series premiere, which doesn't happen much for linear television these days. How has the fan response been?
I've stayed away from looking at anything directly, be it good or bad. I've gone on Twitter once, when CW's Gotham Knights was trending, and it was mainly people raving about Misha [Collins], which was nice to see. [Laughs] I texted Misha and said, "Thank you so much for accounting for our viewership!"
It's nice to hear from relatives and cast members that things are looking good and people are liking it. Positivity has seeped in, and it's been really nice and validating. A lot of love has gone into this, not just from the cast but from the crew, who I think were fighting to be taken seriously and appreciated for their work to be seen as much as we are so that's been really nice.
Navia, what else can you tease as we progress deeper into Gotham Knights Season 1?
I think my favorite part of the show is that it covers these big topics, topics that we’re dealing with in real-life in a really palatable way. You have these things about death, redemption and the contrast between good and bad. [Episode 5] deals with wealth distribution, there are these highbrow topics but in a way that's so fun and through the lens of these characters who I think make it interesting to watch. Obviously, the Court of Owls are very symbolic of that.
As the season progresses, you see the chemistry that forms between all of us and that the love that we have for all of us on-screen. I learned so much from the other actors, and Olivia specifically. I think you see that respect for each other on-screen and that’s really exciting.
Developed for television by Natalie Abrams, Chad Fiveash and James Stoteraux, Gotham Knights airs Tuesdays at 9 pm ET/PT on The CW, with episodes available to stream the following day on The CW App.