Originally published December 16, 2016. Updated March 2, 2020.
Having made his debut in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Jeremy Irons will be reprising the role of Bruce Wayne’s faithful butler and father figure Alfred Pennyworth in next year’s Justice League. While it’s unlikely we’ll get to see much of him – it is a Justice League movie after all – the actor has revealed to IGN that he’ll be getting in on some of the action, as well as discussing his inspiration for his take on the beloved character.
“Alfred is a very hands-on,” said Irons, when asked about concept art showing him as a tail gunner on The Flying Fox. “what I based Alfred on really was a close neighbor of mine, used to be before he died, Paul Getty. I remember the first time I went to dinner with him. I reached gates and a very kind gentleman took my car and parked it. I walked in and another very kind gentleman took my coat. And then Paul showed us through the hall and another very kind gentleman gave me a glass of champagne and then a very kind gentleman served us dinner. I learned during the evening that every kind gentleman who had been taking care of me was actually an ex-SAS member who was there to protect Paul. I thought, yeah, that’s Alfred really. He’s there. He’ll do anything. That’s where he comes from. That’s his mindset. He’ll wash the dishes, but he’ll also be a tail gunner.”
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Asked how Alfred feels being part of a world of super-powered individuals, Irons responded that: “I think he’s waiting with baited breath to see what is going to happen. He’s in the employ of Bruce Wayne and he doesn’t always agree with him but I think he’ll help where he can. And I’m not sure in Justice League we’ll see that much of him because we have five superheroes to deal with and Alfred is just the batman [a term for the soldier-servant of a commissioned officer in the British military] of one of them. It’ll be very interesting to see where he gets to, when we get to Ben’s production of Batman this spring. I haven’t read the script of it yet. I think all of us who are sort of normal human beings, which Alfred is, we watch the gods with amazement and some spite.”
Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes—Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash—it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.
Justice League will reunite Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice stars Henry Cavill as Superman, Ben Affleck as Batman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, Jason Mamoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as The Flash, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth and Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor alongside J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) as Commissioner Gordon, Amber Heard (The Danish Girl) as Mera, Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man) as Vulko, Kiersey Clemons (Dope) as Iris West, Ciaran Hinds (Game of Thrones) as Steppenwolf and Julian Lewis Jones (Stella) in an as-yet-unrevealed role. It is set for release on November 17th 2017.
