lorna lovestrange + bruce wayne
↳ cinematic appearances
THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY
Lorna Lovestrange made her live-action debut in Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins. Many actresses were in talks to play the anti-heroine, the list including — but not limited to — Kate Beckinsale, Charlize Theron, and Milla Jovovich. The role ultimately went to Ali Larter.
She is first referenced to Bruce by a concerned Rachel Dawes during their reunion, who briefly mentions their childhood friend being kept at Arkham. Lorna is then later seen for the first time being escorted from Dr Jonathan Crane's therapy suite to vacate for Carmine Falcone. The look she gives Crane is not lost on Rachel as she is sent back to her cell. She's discharged from Arkham later on in the film, where she has a fleeting and emotionally distant meeting with Bruce. She mourns the friendship they'd once shared, and departs, disenfranchised by how much fondness she'd once held for him. She is present during the Batman's encounter with the Scarecrow, having sworn vengeance not only for the experimentation, but for the kidnapping of Rachel. It is here that she is exposed to her overdose of the fear toxin. Her fate is unknown, but it is heavily implied that she passed away, solidifying Bruce's resolve in distancing himself from Rachel. In the last moments of the film, it is revealed that Lorna is alive when she visits Crane in Arkham. They have an exchange of words, and Lorna is shown to take great pleasure in Jonathan's broken condition.
Lovestrange had never meant to be in the sequel, but her status as a fan favourite warranted her return. She is first seen at the police parade for the judge's funeral, her attendance at first being out of respect, as her family were well-known Gotham officials and were close with the family. This is her first encounter with the Joker, his arrival being of some cause for concern. Under military guidance, Lorna remains in Gotham as a failsafe measure to contain Joker. She reappears later when he is in custody, and has an exchange with Jim Gordon, who is the first to call her by the moniker of Cannonade. She is permitted to interrogate the Clown Prince of Crime, but her attempt ultimately fails when he is unwilling to speak to anyone other than Batman. He does, however, take great interest in Lorna herself. Frustrated, Lorna leaves the room, encountering Batman on her way out. It is clear that she is visibly struggling to control her violent temper, and a brief flicker of concern is seen on Bruce's face as she exits.
Her final appearance in the franchise comes in The Dark Knight Rises. She is first seen in the opening sequence of Dr. Pavel's kidnapping as one of Bane's hired mercenaries. It is during the breaking of Batman that Lorna discovers Bruce's alter ego, and expresses a glimmer of remorse behind her cold exterior. Bane, sensing the burgeoning doubt in Cannonade, puts her loyalty to the test by gifting her to Jonathan Crane — now having taken up the position of Gotham's judge — as his enforcer. Her resentment for Bane festers and grows as she is forced to bend to Crane's every whim. During the final battle, her unpredictability gives way as she turns on Bane, dying by his hand to allow Bruce to escape. Her sacrifice doesn't go unacknowledged, and in the final scene of the film with Bruce and Selina in Italy, we see a faded photograph of a young Lorna, Rachel, and Bruce tucked away in Bruce's wallet.
GOTHAM
During Gotham's run, Lorna Lovestrange was portrayed by two separate actresses. The first of which — Ryan Kiera Armstrong — depicted Lorna's younger years during her school days with Bruce, and the incident which consequently landed her in Arkham.
Her connection to Thomas Elliot remained, although it was altered greatly. She is most notably present in the first eight episodes of the first season, being a shoulder for Bruce to cry on and to lend an ear to his idot plans of conquering fear. Her last appearance of the season came in episode eight, following Bruce’s confrontation with Thomas Elliot after the bullying incident. After Bruce delivered his punch, Lorna returned to the Elliot home, not at all satisfied with Bruce’s self-discovered catharsis. The knife she’d brought with her found its home in the soft tissue of the belly of the first person to answer the door. Unfortunately, that person had not been Tommy, but rather the Elliot’s hired help. Her parents committed her to Arkham Asylum that episode, her last words to Bruce being enclosed in a letter to him. She is briefly seen again in episode fifteen as Jonathan Crane’s cellmate in Arkham, rather than her being his patient.
The recasting of Lorna Lovestrange came when the show’s material regarding Cannonade’s characterisation was deemed unsavory for such a young actress to continue portraying in good conscience, and Jessica Alexander was brought in to continue the role. In every Arkham related episode, Lorna was given cameos here and there, her fall from grace a gradual building dread in every appearance. She eventually gets discharged, and reunites with Bruce at Anders Preparatory Academy, though their friendship is strained. Lorna clearly clings to the memories of the old days, and wants to return to that time, but Bruce has grown out of their bond, and, much to her dismay, her.
She appears, for the most part, stable, but when she catches the eye of Thomas Elliot, she begins to slowly grow paranoid and unravel. It is here that Cannonade makes her first true appearance, when she believes she is being followed home by Elliot and lashes out, killing her pursuer. It is revealed then that it had been a hallucination induced by the remnants of Crane’s fear toxin, and the man had been a mere stranger attempting to return a dropped wallet to her. She promptly leaves the city again towards the end of season three, stopping by Wayne Manor upon her departure to say goodbye to Bruce. Finding Bruce is not there, she confides in Alfred and tells him she is finally respecting her father’s wishes of enrolling in a military school, making a joke of how the “discipline might be good for [her]”. Her final appearance comes in season five, in the finale, with a wedding-dress clad Lorna Lovestrange gazing out the window of (what is believed to be) Thomas Elliot’s house as the bat signal hits the crisp dark of the sky.
DCEU
Lorna’s most popular iteration had meant to be introduced in David Ayers’ Suicide Squad, but her scenes were ultimately cut from the film in an attempt to streamline the story. The deleted scenes can be found in the Director’s Cut, showing Lorna and Harleen in Arkham together. She returns briefly later on in the film as one of Flag’s soldiers, and is present during Harley’s torture in Belle Reve. To compensate for the large age-gap between Ben Affleck and Samara Weaving, Lorna’s previous friendship connection to Wayne was transferred to that of Dick Grayson, and Lorna was made into Bruce Wayne’s goddaughter instead.
All of this is retconned in Birds of Prey, as Harley and Lorna are roommates above Doc’s place. Given that Harley was convicted and sentenced for the murder of the Robin, Birds of Prey decidedly turn a blind-eye to the previously failed and deleted characterisation of Lovestrange, but returned Samara Weaving to the role. Lorna is not present much in the film, save for an expository throwaway line by Harley (“You can stay with me, my roomie’s outta town. Somethin’ ‘bout a weddin’. Can’t believe she didn’t invite me, some friend, right?”) paired with a brief compilation of Lorna Lovestrange’s deranged attempts at escape from Thomas Elliot, resulting in the consequent massacre and fire at the Elliot Estate.
It is in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad that she makes her true DCEU debut. Having been sentenced to Belle Reve following her crimes in Gotham, Lorna is sent as a part of Flag’s entourage to the island of Corto Maltese. She was the only one Walker told about the intent of the first team to be used as a distraction, her purpose on the team being to look out for Flag. She manages to get Flag off the beach, but when she, against Waller’s wishes, goes back for Harley, Flag is captured by the rebels. Lorna regroups with Bloodsport’s team in an attempt to earn back Waller’s favour. Throughout the film, Lorna and Rick develop a banterous flirtation. They reference a fleeting history with each other — a professional relationship, nothing more — but heavily imply that should they make it off that cursed island alive, there is a strong possibility for there to be something more. Lorna takes it incredibly hard when Rick dies by the Peacemaker’s hand, but pulls herself together long enough to help her team to save the world.
Lorna’s arrival in Peacemaker was only hinted at in the Pilot, with Amanda Waller warning Leota Adebayo that a mystery “she” has escaped Belle Reve, and for Leota to watch her and the Peacemaker’s backs. The first episode ends with Lorna having caught up to Christopher Smith, now adorned in an all-black suit — reminiscent of her comic book run during her Cannonade military days — and hair coloured ginger. All previous character design of tattoos and piercings — suggestive of Lorna’s instability and reckless nature — have been removed, giving Lovestrange a much more clean-cut and inconspicuous appearance. In the opening of the second episode, we receive a self-narrated montage of Lorna hearing of Peacemaker surviving his injuries, her consequent escape from Belle Reve, the painful process of laser tattoo removal, Harley dyeing her hair for her in a mirroring scene to Harley’s haircut in Birds of Prey, and the introduction of Lorna’s therapist: the exasperated Dr. Florentine de la Cruz. We see Lorna hunting down any and all leads on Christopher Smith in a parody of a hardened and gruff private-eye, before cutting back to a confused Smith in present day, wondering why Lorna felt the need to expostion dump on him. With Vigilante’s assistance, Peacemaker makes his getaway, which prompts Lorna to hunt him throughout the series, showing up at increasingly worsening times. Towards the end of the season, Lorna learns of the extraterrestrial threat to the earth and puts aside her vendetta to assist the 11th Street Kids. She grows close to Adrian Chase during that time, but is ultimately cockblocked by the potential end of the world. Christopher later apologises to Lorna for the part he played in Rick's death, and although she still doesn’t much like him, they make peace; pun intended.
THE BATMAN
Returning to the status quo of childhood friendship gone awry, Lorna Lovestrange’s first appearance in Matt Reeves’ The Batman comes at the mayor’s funeral. Daughter to instruments of Gotham’s influence, Lorna’s presence was deemed mandatory. She lights up immediately after having spied Bruce in the crowd, but her attempts of reconnecting with him are rebuffed. Visibly stung by his indifference, she makes to leave before Bruce, in an endeavour to salvage what little bond they have left, asks her about her time in Arkham — insinuating the beginning of her comic book origins. She is about to respond before Colson interrupts them. Lorna snaps into action, helping the police get everyone to safety. She is then later seen at the end of the film during Bruce's narration of Gotham being put under martial law. We catch a brief shot of her beside Bella Reál during her address to the public. Lorna is accompanied by men in military gear, suggesting she is spear-heading the operation. Eagle-eyed fans will be able to spot the name “Cannonade” written on the folder in her hands.
(insp.)
