| Publisher: | DC Comics |
| Debut: | #6 (May 1997) |
| Creators: | Jeph Loeb Tim Sale |
| Full Name: | Sofia Falcone |
| Species: | Human |
| Aliases: | The Hangman |
| Character Name: | Sofia Falcone |
Sofia Falcone is a villain appearing in DC Comics, primarily in association with the character Batman. Debuting in the 1996–97 comic book limited series by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, she is introduced as a member of the Falcone crime family, who assists her father Carmine Falcone in unearthing the identity of the "Holiday Killer"—later revealed to be Sofia's own brother Alberto Falcone, a mass-murderer who had been indiscriminately killing Gotham City's citizens in correlation with holidays in the yearly calendar. In the 1999–2000 limited series which served as a continuation of the arc established in The Long Halloween, Sofia is revealed as the identity behind the murderer known under the alias the Hangman, who had spent over a year targeting and eliminating various members of the Gotham City Police Department, notably in association with former district attorney-turned criminal, Harvey Dent / Two-Face, who ends up killing her during a lengthy confrontation with Batman himself.
The character made her live-action debut in the television series Gotham, portrayed by Crystal Reed. She will also appear in the upcoming HBO television miniseries The Penguin (2024) set in The Batman shared universe, portrayed by Cristin Milioti.
Sofia Falcone first appeared in Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's 1996 miniseries as the daughter of crime lord Carmine Falcone.[1] She returned in the sequel , where she became the Hangman killer to avenge her father's death.[2]
Loeb stated in an interview that he paralleled the Falcone family to that of the Corleone family, with Sofia's temper matching that of Sonny Corleone.
When the Holiday killer started killing members of the Falcone family, Carmine has his daughter Sofia released from prison early to help him find who the killer was.
In the end the killer was apparently revealed to be Alberto Falcone, Carmine's son and Sofia's brother. Afterwards, Carmine was killed by Gotham's district attorney Harvey Dent, who became Two-Face after having his face splashed with acid, and Sofia fell out of the Falcone's penthouse window after being attacked by Catwoman.
Sofia is revealed to have survived her fall, now in a wheelchair and wearing a neck brace, and is the new head of the Falcone family. Meanwhile, a new serial killer known as the Hangman is killing the cops of Gotham City with a noose.
In the end, Sofia is revealed to be the killer, having faked her paralysis. She kills her brother Alberto for being a "disappointment" to the family, and then tries to kill Two-Face, but Batman stops her. While she is battling him, Two-Face shoots her in the head.