FOX just announced that its Batman prequel series ‘Gotham’ will be coming back in the fall for its fifth and final season, but showrunner Bruno Heller and producers Warner Horizons aren’t ready to abandon the Bat-verse just yet. Premium cable service Epix has placed a ten episode, straight-to-series order for ‘Pennyworth,’ a different prequel series. The series, obviously showcases Alfred Pennyworth, the Wayne family’s trusty butler, a former British SAS soldier, who forms a secret company and goes to work for Thomas Wayne. The series will be set in Great Britain in the 1960s and will not be connected to ‘Gotham’ or its Alfred played by Sean Pertwee.
Heller will write the script for the pilot and serve as executive producer. Danny Cannon, who directed the pilot for ‘Gotham’ will also helm the pilot for ‘Pennyworth’, despite the lack of connection between the two shows.
Epix president Michael Wright said:
“As genuine fans of these classic DC characters, as well as the incredibly talented Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon, we couldn’t be more excited to make Epix the home of this series. We can’t wait to work with Bruno and Danny — along with Peter Roth, Susan Rovner, Brett Paul and the team at Warner Horizon — on this fantastic origin story.”
Heller and Cannon released a joint statement, saying:
“Michael and his colleagues have created the perfect venue for original storytelling, and all of us working on Pennyworth are thrilled to be on the Epix slate.”
Casting has not yet begun for ‘Pennyworth’, so we don’t quite know which version of this character the show will utilize. Alfred Pennyworth used to be depicted as a traditional English butler, as portrayed by Pertwee, as well as Alan Napier on the 1960s TV series, Michael Gough in the first cycle of theatrical movies, Michael Caine in the ‘Dark Knight’ flicks and voiced by Efrem Zimbalist Jr. on ‘Batman: The Animated Series’. More recently, however, efforts have been made to emphasize Alfred’s military background, by toughening him up, as he has been portrayed in the current DC movies with Jeremy Irons in the role or as voiced by JB Blanc on the short-lived animated ‘Beware the Batman’.
Are you intrigued to see a series based on Batman’s trusty butler?
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
