Justice League: Alfred Will 'Wash Dishes, But He'll Also Be a Tail Gunner'

CBR

By Tim Adams

Published Dec 15, 2016

Batman v Superman star Jeremy Irons discussed Alfred's mindset, what he'll be willing to do in the next two DCEU films and more.

Warner Bros.' DC Extended Universe may be filling up with gods and monsters, but Alfred Pennyworth is sticking by Batman's side. Jeremy Irons is set to reprise his role as Bruce Wayne's butler and confidant in both "Justice League" and Ben Affleck's "The Batman," and he recently opened up to IGN about his future appearances in the DCEU.

"I think he's waiting with baited breath to see what is going to happen," Irons said of Alfred's reaction to the introduction of metahumans. "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 [Affleck]'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," he added.

As it turns out, Irons' version of Alfred -- who is more physically involved than previous iterations -- is based on a close neighbor of his. "Yeah, Alfred is a very hands-on... what I based Alfred on really was a close neighbor of mine, used to be before he died, Paul Getty," Irons shared. "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."

Starring Affleck, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill and more, "Justice League" is currently set to release on November 17, 2017, while "The Batman" eyes a 2018 release date.