Coleman Reese was recruited from the graduating class of Gotham University's law school with promises of quick promotion and financial largesse. But over the next five years he was instead placed in a Wayne Enterprises law library to organize due diligence. Reese was always missing out on getting fair breaks, yet was once given that earned him a nice vacation in the south of France. But to him, a lawyer with his abilities shouldn't be stuck in a library doing chores, but in a courtroom where his eloquence, personal charm and charisma would not only be in winning cases, but also putting the best possible face on the company itself.
Now made the trust fund numbers holder in Wayne Enterprises' business deal with Lau Security Investments Holdings, Reese appeared to be more interested in money than anything else, as he was disappointed by Bruce Wayne's rejection of Lau's proposal, and finds his sleeping during the meeting an embarrassment. Reese discovered that Bruce Wayne was Batman when he dug up some plans for the Batman. He offered to keep silent for ten million dollars each year for the rest of his life, but then decided to not speak when Lucius Fox reminded him of Bruce Wayne's considerable wealth and influence, as well as his fighting prowess as Batman.
Later, after Bruce allowed Harvey Dent to get arrested for being Batman, Coleman was about to reveal the real identity on Gotham Tonight, but The Joker comes by via phone call, threatening to blow up a hospital if Reese wasn't killed within the hour, since the Joker doesn't want Reese to spoil the fun of the battle between himself and Batman. As a result, Reese is being targeted by several people (presumably out of fear of several of their relatives being in the local hospitals), but Bruce Wayne intervened and saved Reese's life from a madman trying to run him down with his truck. In gratitude, Reese agrees to keep Batman's identity a secret and vows never to speak of it again for good.
Behind the scenes[]
- Although it is most likely a coincidence, Coleman Reese's name could be shown as Mr. Reese which is pronounced as "mysteries" mirroring how The Riddler's initials are E.Nigma pronounced as "enigma" (another word for mystery).
- Reese could also be a slight nod to Hugo Strange and Tim Drake who each discovered that Bruce Wayne is Batman all on their own with minimal resources.