Rupert Thorne (DC Animated Universe)

“	Just stay on him Candice. All men have something to hide. The brighter the picture, the darker the negative.	„
	~ Thorne directing his moll Candice to spy on Harvey Dent.

Rupert Thorne is a supporting antagonist in the DC Animated Universe. He was responsible for the creation of Two-Face.

He was voiced by the late John Vernon, who also portrayed Curtis Mooney in Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Jonathan Stryker in Curtains, and Mr. Ashland in Dinosaurs.

History[]

Batman: The Animated Series[]

He appears as the most powerful crime boss in Gotham City. Thorne first appears in the two-part episode "Two-Face", in which he was responsible for district attorney Harvey Dent's transformation into Two-Face (replacing Sal Maroni). Thorne blackmails Dent with his psychological records, threatening to tell the press that the young DA suffers from multiple personality disorder unless he stops prosecuting his henchmen. Enraged, Dent "switches" into his alternate, violent personality and chases Thorne into a nearby chemical processing plant, where an explosion disfigures the left side of Dent's face and leaves his evil personality in permanent control. Dent (now calling himself "Two-Face") later seeks revenge on Thorne. He first attacks fronts for Thorne's criminal activities with his gang, then steals a file with enough information to ruin the crime boss. With Batman's help, Two-Face succeeds in capturing Thorne, although Batman is forced to apprehend Two-Face, as well.

Thorne's next appearance is in the following episode, "It's Never Too Late", in which he is at war with rival mob boss Arnold Stromwell. He invites Stromwell to a sit-down at a restaurant he owns under the pretense of negotiating a ceasefire, only to make an attempt on his life by blowing up the building. Batman saves Stromwell in time and persuades him to give up his life of crime and help to bring Thorne down. Thorne corners Stromwell and his estranged brother Michael and almost kills them before being knocked unconscious by Batman and left for the police.

In "Vendetta", Batman suspects Thorne of abducting "Spider" Conway and interrogates him in his greenhouse, only to discover Thorne did not consider Conway important enough to dispose of him; the kidnapper turns out to be Killer Croc.

In the episode "The Man who Killed Batman", the titular character, small-time criminal Sidney Debris, begs Thorne to smuggle him out of Gotham to escape from people on both sides of the law who are after him for supposedly killing Batman. Sidney recounts his story which started with his role in Thorne's failed drug racket and ended with a near-fatal encounter with the Joker. Thorne refuses to believe that Sidney is a victim of mere circumstance (or that stupid) and believes that he is trying to move his way into his business. Thorne prepares to kill him when Batman (who was alive all along) appears and knocks him out.

The episode "Paging The Crime Doctor" reveals that Thorne employs his younger brother Dr. Matthew Thorne, who lost his license when he was caught performing an unlicensed operation, as a back-alley surgeon, reluctantly treating the wounds that Rupert's goons suffer while working for him. While reluctantly performing medicine on gangsters as the "Crime Doctor", he surgically removes a benign tumor from Rupert's heart, with the help of his colleague Dr. Leslie Thompkins, under the condition that his brother would use his connections to reinstate Matthew's medical license. After the surgery, however, Matthew turns on Rupert when the elder Thorne tries to kill Thompkins to prevent her from going to the police. Matthew turns himself in to the police in the aftermath, leaving Thorne's fate in the episode unknown.

In the episode "Bane", Thorne hires the titular masked criminal to assassinate Batman. Unbeknownst to Thorne, his moll Candice is conspiring with Bane to kill him as well so they can run the city's underworld. After Batman defeats Bane by severing the tubing that pumps the Venom steroids into his body, he sends the hired killer to Thorne, beaten and noticeably smaller, along with an audio recording of his treasonous conversations with Candice.

In "Second Chance," Thorne is one of the primary suspects in Two-Face's kidnapping. Robin plans to interrogate Thorne, but he is captured by Thorne's men and brought before the mob boss himself. While Thorne denies any involvement in Two-Face's kidnapping, he sends his men to throw Robin off a bridge, although Robin breaks free and knocks his would-be murderers into the river.

Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman[]

Rupert Thorne's most major appearance in the DC Animated Universe continuity outside Batman: The Animated Series is the direct-to-DVD movie, Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman (based on The New Batman Adventures) with John Vernon reprising his role. He works with Penguin and Carlton Duquesne in an arms deal with the President of Kasnia. The three are also allied with Bane, although there is no mention of Bane's previous allegiance with Thorne. Of the three Batwomen, Thorne shares a personal history with Sonia

Alcana whose life he ruined when he ordered her parents' shop burned down when she was still a child. Thorne had escaped punishment due to lack of evidence, although everyone knew he was the one behind it. In the end, Thorne is proven guilty for his role in the arms deal and sent to prison, most likely for life.

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