Pennyworth (later known as Pennyworth: The Origin of Batman's Butler) is an American crime drama, created by the Gotham showrunners Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon and scored by Gotham composer David E. Russo. It is based on the Batman property by DC Comics, primarily focusing on a young Alfred Pennyworth and Thomas Wayne around twenty years prior to the time period of Gotham, taking place in a gritty London during the 1960s. The series was ordered for the first season of ten episodes, which began filming in October 2018 and was expected to air on Epix, July 28, 2019, before being released a week early on July 21. A second season was confirmed in October 2019, and began filming in January 2020. A third and final season ran from October to November 2022, before being cancelled in February 2023.
Synopsis
The origin story of Alfred Pennyworth, a former special-forces soldier living in London and how he came to work for Bruce Wayne's father.
Cast
Regular
- Jack Bannon as Alfred Pennyworth
- Ben Aldridge as Thomas Wayne
- Emma Paetz as Martha Kane
- Ryan Fletcher as Dave Boy
- Hainsley Lloyd Bennett as Bazza
- Paloma Faith as Bet Sykes
- Jason Flemyng as Lord Harwood
Recurring
- Polly Walker as Peggy Sykes
- Jessica Ellerby as The Queen
Seasons
- Season 1
- Season 2
- Season 3
Possible Connection to Gotham
It is ambiguous as to whether or not the show is set within the same universe established in Gotham, which was also developed by Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon and scored by David E. Russo. Although it has been previously claimed that the show is standalone and unrelated to Gotham, Danny Cannon has said Pennyworth is part of the official canon of the series.[1] In addition, the official website for David E. Russo describes the tv series as "the acclaimed, highly-stylized spinoff Pennyworth" when describing its relation to the Gotham series.[2]
Other possible connections have sprung up over time. For example, in the Gotham season 2 episode "Rise of the Villains: Knock, Knock" Alfred talks about a man named Onslow who he knew back in London who eventually betrayed Alfred, forcing him to kill him. In the second episode of the Pennyworth series, a man named Sid Onslow is introduced, tending a bar in London. Besides the name and the man's location, no other connection has yet to be established as the incident described in the Gotham series does not yet seem to have occurred, if indeed the two shows are set in the same timeline.
Producers had hoped that if the show went on past season three it would have concluded with a flash-forward and with the possibility of David Mazouz reprising his role as Bruce Wayne/Batman. The cancellation of the show prevented any such thing from happening.
During a retrospective anniversary interview for Gotham, the creatives who had worked on both shows discussed the connections. Creator Bruno Heller reiterated his intention upon them being set in different worlds, stating that Pennyworth stood as more of a prequel to the V for Vendetta graphic novel. Co-creator and director Danny Cannon stated however, that while Heller was definite in his answer, the beginning of Pennyworth seemed to open many options for Alfred's character coming to America to take care of Bruce Wayne, which Cannon had thought up several ideas for, in spite of Heller's insistence on the separation of the two shows' worlds. Producer and writer John Stephens noted that technically they had never created any piece of lore for the show that would prevent the two shows from existing in the same timeline even though they never considered Pennyworth as existing in the same space as Gotham.[3]
Gallery
Posters
Promotional
