Pennyworth (TV series)

Pennyworth
Genre	Action Crime drama Superhero Thriller
Based on	Alfred Pennyworth by Bill Finger Jerry Robinson
Starring	Jack Bannon Ben Aldridge Emma Paetz Hainsley Lloyd Bennett Ryan Fletcher Dorothy Atkinson Ian Puleston-Davies Paloma Faith Polly Walker Jason Flemyng
Composers	David E. Russo Lorne Balfe
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of series	2
No. of episodes	20 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Bruno Heller Danny Cannon
Running time	50–71 min
Production companies	Primrose Hill Productions DC Entertainment Warner Horizon Television (season 1) Warner Bros. Television (season 2–present)
Original release
Network	Epix (season 1–2) HBO Max (season 3)
Release	July 28, 2019 (2019-07-28) – present (present)

Pennyworth is an American television series that premiered on July 28, 2019, on Epix. The series is executive produced by Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon and stars Jack Bannon as Alfred Pennyworth from DC Comics's Batman series, alongside Ben Aldridge, Emma Paetz, Ryan Fletcher, Hainsley Lloyd Bennett, Paloma Faith, Polly Walker, and Jason Flemyng.

The second season began filming in January 2020, but the filming was paused in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The second season premiered on December 13, 2020. The series moved to HBO Max for the third season, as of October 2021.

Premise

Pennyworth explores the early life of the titular Wayne family butler, Alfred Pennyworth, a former British SAS soldier who is forming his own security company after the end of World War II, and in which London combines aspects of the 1950s and 1960s with invented events and practices, such as a modern civil war and televised public executions.

Alfred becomes a target of the Raven Society, a group conspiring to take over the British government, and begins working against them alongside American agents of the No Name League, Thomas Wayne and Martha Kane, the future parents of Bruce Wayne.

Cast and characters

Main

• Jack Bannon as Alfred Pennyworth, a former British SAS soldier who worked as a bouncer at an exclusive London club while starting up his own security firm. In season 2 he runs his own club. The character was specifically developed from Michael Caine's portrayal of the character in The Dark Knight trilogy, directed by Christopher Nolan. Caine's portrayal includes a previous background as a member of the British SAS. Despite this, the character is a younger version of the iteration portrayed by Sean Pertwee.
• Ben Aldridge as Thomas Wayne, a wealthy young American forensic accountant and doctor from Gotham City who is impressed with Alfred's skills and hopes to hire him. Wayne is secretly an agent of the CIA, working undercover in the No Name League.
• Hainsley Lloyd Bennett as Deon "Bazza" Bashford (seasons 1–2), a playboy and longtime friend of Alfred who served with him in the army.
• Ryan Fletcher as Wallace "Daveboy" McDougal, another longtime friend of Alfred who has a drinking problem and served with him in the army.
• Dorothy Atkinson as Mary Pennyworth, Alfred's mother.
• Ian Puleston-Davies as Arthur Pennyworth, Alfred's father, who works as a butler. After attempting to kill the queen at the end of season 1, he is shot by Alfred but survives, now kept alive by a life-support wheelchair.
• Paloma Faith as Bet Sykes, a sadistic sociopath who initially works as an enforcer for the Raven Society. She becomes attached to Alfred's girlfriend Esme while holding her hostage. In season 2 she becomes a captain at an interrogation center for the Raven Union.
• Jason Flemyng as Lord James Harwood (seasons 1–2), the former leader of the Raven Society, who is conspiring to take control of the British government. In season 2 he is the leader of the Raven Union.
• Polly Walker as Peggy Sykes, Bet's sister.
• Emma Paetz as Martha Kane, an American agent for the No Name League who hires Alfred to assist her on dangerous missions. She develops a crush on Alfred during their missions and a budding friendship with Thomas, later leading to a relationship with the latter.
• Ramon Tikaram as Detective Inspector Aziz (recurring, season 1; main season 2), a high-ranking detective in the London police force, and later Prime Minister of England.
• Harriet Slater as Sandra Onslow (recurring, season 1; main season 2), the daughter of Sid Onslow who is romantically interested in Alfred.
• Edward Hogg as Colonel John Salt (season 2), a high-ranking colonel in the Raven Union.
• Jessye Romeo as Katie Browning (season 2), an art student whose life is changed due to the Raven Union.
• James Purefoy as Captain Gulliver Troy (season 2), Alfred's former SAS captain. Purefoy is billed as "special guest star".

Recurring

• Emma Corrin as Esme Winikus (season 1), a nightclub dancer and aspiring actress who falls in love with Alfred.
• Jessica Ellerby as The Queen.
• Danny Webb as John Ripper (season 1-2), a local crime lord who develops a friendship with Alfred.
• Jonjo O'Neill as Aleister Crowley
• Richard Clothier (season 1) as the Prime Minister
• Ben Wiggins as Spanish (season 1), a SAS officer and friend of Alfred who died
• Saikat Ahamed as Mr. Chadley
• Simon Day as Sid Onslow, the father of Sandra Onslow and the landlord of the Severed Arms, a local pub frequented by Alfred Pennyworth, Daveboy, and Bazza
• Jennie Goossens as Mrs. Spicer
• Steve Edwin as Mr. Spicer
• Anna Chancellor as Frances Gaunt, a doctor and the new leader of the Raven Society
• Sarah Alexander as Undine Thwaite (season 1), the new leader of the No Name League
• Charlie Woodward as Captain John Curzon (season 1), a retired military Captain from Alfred Pennyworth's time in the SAS
• Jessica Claire as Vikki Dufrench
• Sally Tatum as Miss Dixon
• Sharon Ballard as Ruby Carmichael
• Jessica De Gouw as Melanie Troy (season 2), Gulliver Troy's wife.
• Suzanne Boreel as Rita
• Faisal Mohammed as Monty
• Simon Manyonda as Lucius Fox (season 2), a young scientist that works for the CIA to infiltrate the Raven Union.
• Tristram Wymark as General Nelson Thursday (season 2), a commanding officer in the British Army and the Field Marshal for the Raven Union.

Guest

• Salóme Gunnarsdóttir as Patricia Wayne
• Freddy Carter as Jason Ripper

Episodes

Season	Episodes		Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired	Network
1	10		July 28, 2019 (2019-07-28)	September 29, 2019 (2019-09-29)	Epix
2	10		December 13, 2020 (2020-12-13)	April 11, 2021 (2021-04-11)

Season 1 (2019)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1	1	"Pilot"	Danny Cannon	Bruno Heller	July 28, 2019 (2019-07-28)
Former British SAS soldier Alfred Pennyworth becomes caught up in the conflict between American agent Thomas Wayne and the shadowy Raven Society.
2	2	"The Landlord's Daughter"	Danny Cannon	Bruno Heller	August 4, 2019 (2019-08-04)
Alfred's side job as a security consultant brings him to the attention of local crime lord John Ripper.
3	3	"Martha Kane"	Bill Eagles	Bruno Heller	August 11, 2019 (2019-08-11)
American No Name League agent Martha Kane hires Alfred to assist her on a dangerous mission.
4	4	"Lady Penelope"	China Moo-Young	Bruno Heller	August 11, 2019 (2019-08-11)
Martha enlists Alfred to help get the name of the new leader of the Raven Society.
5	5	"Shirley Bassey"	Rob Bailey	Bruno Heller	August 18, 2019 (2019-08-18)
In the wake of Esme's murder, Alfred is slowly pulled out of his depression by Ripper, who insists that an enemy of Alfred killed her.
6	6	"Cilla Black"	Bill Eagles	Bruno Heller	August 25, 2019 (2019-08-25)
Ripper sends Alfred to a witch who gives him clues to find Esme's killer. Lord Harwood's memory returns.
7	7	"Julie Christie"	Clare Kilner	Seth Sinclair	September 8, 2019 (2019-09-08)
While Thomas and Martha visit Crowley's mansion seeking Patricia, Alfred closes in on Esme's killer, Captain Curzon. Arthur Pennyworth actively participates at a Raven Society meeting.
8	8	"Sandie Shaw"	Jon East	Danny Cannon	September 15, 2019 (2019-09-15)
As Alfred hunts down Curzon with help from Bet, Lord Harwood plots his return to power.
9	9	"Alma Cogan"	Rob Bailey	Bruno Heller	September 22, 2019 (2019-09-22)
Alfred is offered a way out of prison as the Prime Minister plots against both the Raven Society and the No Name League.
10	10	"Marianne Faithfull"	Danny Cannon	Bruno Heller	September 29, 2019 (2019-09-29)
While Lord Harwood stages a coup, Alfred, Bazza, and Dave Boy help Thomas and Martha rescue the Queen from the Sykes sisters. Lord Harwood, Francis Gaunt, and the Sykes are arrested. Alfred is pardoned, but finds himself trying to stop his father from assassinating the Queen and Prime Minister.

Season 2 (2020–21)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
11	1	"The Heavy Crown"	Danny Cannon	Bruno Heller	December 13, 2020 (2020-12-13)
Several months passed since the last season. Lord Harwood escaped and his Raven Union has the British Army's backing, having taken over most of the UK. The Queen and what remain of the League are besieged in London. Alfred runs a bar and does side jobs for both sides, being paid by Aziz - now a League council member - to kidnap Salt, a supposedly minor Raven Union functionary. He is collecting money to leave the country for the USA. Meanwhile, Martha Kane has risen to lieutenant position in the League, and meets with a returning Thomas Wayne, now named CIA section leader, who tells her that the USA will remain neutral in the conflict, and that he is engaged to be married. Bet Sykes now works as a captain in an interrogation center of the Raven Union, and unhappy with her job, kills her superior and escapes with an art student prisoner. Salt is sprung from Aziz's team by Gully, Alfred's old SAS captain, and is revealed to have been working with him. It is also shown that Salt is working on project Stormcloud, a poison gas weapon.
12	2	"The Burning Bridge"	Danny Cannon	Bruno Heller	December 20, 2020 (2020-12-20)
The CIA tasks Thomas Wayne to find dirt on Archbishop Potter, as he is an open opponent of nuclear warfare. He meets with Alistair Crowley who agrees to ruin the Archbishop's reputation for a kiss. Alfred and his friends get ready to leave the country with the money they accumulated. Alfie feels conflicted over leaving Sandra behind and gets into arguments with his mum, who wants to stay. Mrs. Gaunt learns about Stormcloud and seemingly talks Harwood out of using the poison gas. Amateur criminals kidnap Alfred's mother on the behest of a masked "Mr X" in return for the money, but it is revealed it was Lt. Aziz who set up the whole thing and shows up as Alfred frees his mum, resulting in the kidnappers getting away with the money. Meanwhile, Bet and Katie stay in hiding as Bet realizes she cannot contact Lord Harwood.
13	3	"The Belt and Welt"	Rob Bailey	Jimmy Dowdall	December 27, 2020 (2020-12-27)
After a strange dream involving his father, Alfred gets the idea that it was Captain Gully who stole their money. He gets his whereabouts from his wife, and confronts him, but Gully swears on his honor it wasn't him, and invites Alfred to do a robbery with his crew, which he declines. Meanwhile, Crowley seduces the Archbishop to the ways of the flesh and releases incriminating photos of him involved in an orgy, which causes Potter to resign and commit suicide. Martha, realizing from a comment by Alfred that it was Thomas who hired Crowley, confronts him and is deeply disappointed. Bet and Katie take refuge at the home of a teacher of the latter, and Bet finally gets in contact with Lord Harwood. Despite both Mrs. Gaunt and Salt trying to talk him out of saving her, Harwood orders Salt to bring back Bet alive, but Salt's policemen open fire at the house. Daveboy realizes he once drunkenly bragged to someone about the money, which prompts Alfred to notice a 500ł ring on the finger of one of his waitresses, Sheri. She reveals it was given to her by Vic Dobson, a small time crook. They track Vic to his home at the carnival caravan, and he and Alfred fight in the hall of mirrors, where Alfred mortally wounds him in self defense. Sheri grabs the money and tries to escape in a car, but drives into fuel barrels, with the explosion killing her and destroying the money. Bazza is mortally wounded by the explosion and makes Alfred and Daveboy swear to not give up and make it to America as he dies.
14	4	"The Hunted Fox"	Rob Bailey	Seth Sinclair	December 27, 2020 (2020-12-27)
At Bazza's funeral, Gully Troy shows up and Alfred agrees to do a robbery with him. Thomas visits Martha, asking for her help as his sister Patricia is in love with a seductive fashion designer, who proposes to her at a party. Meanwhile, Bet Sykes and Katie smuggle themselves into London and find Bet's sister who runs an S&M sex toy shop. The Queen listens to the candidates' speeches, with Ripper proposing to free criminals and use them in their army, while Aziz tries to appeal to the democratic and moral values of people. Aziz gets elected as prime minister. Alfred and Troy successfully rob the Lord Mayor's coach, stealing the hidden gold he carried. During the celebration, Alfred gets angry at seeing Troy abuse his wife, and they nearly come to blows, but then he agrees to do one last job with him. Alfred secretly kisses Mrs. Troy though. Thomas and Martha work together as Martha proves to Patricia the fashion designer's infidelity by tying him up as he was trying to seduce her while naked, and Patricia terminates the engagement. Thomas and Martha reconcile and have sex. Lord Harwood starts showing signs of mental imbalance, starting to consider using the poison gas, and is shown to be medicated by Salt. Salt subtly suggests to Mrs. Gaunt to reach out to Aziz and try to begin peace talks. The Raven leadership attends a demonstration of Stormcloud and is shown how capable it is of quickly and efficiently killing prisoners. Unknowingly, they are being filmed by an undercover Lucius Fox.
15	5	"The Bleeding Heart"	Jon East	Hannah Boschi	March 7, 2021 (2021-03-07)
Mrs Gaunt meets with Prime Minister Aziz and warns him in vain to surrender or risk Stormcloud being deployed in London. Salt tells Lord Harwood about Gaunt's secret meeting, who, no longer trusting her, has her imprisoned. Martha and Thomas deepen their relationship, while Thomas receives a message from Lucius Fox asking to be extracted. Katie learns all the terrible things Bet has done, but still decides to stick by her and try to help her change. Alfred learns from Thomas that the tickets to America cost more than he assumed, making it necessary for them to work with Gully Troy again. They plan to rob a fixed wrestling match and make off with the winnings, however due to the fighters getting into a squabble, the match ends sooner than expected. An unmasked Banjo, one of Gully's men, kills several civilians in the chaos following the explosion heard from the safe being blown up. Alfred's mother realizes where he got the money from and expels him from her house. Alfred gives in to the advances of Gully's wife, Melanie, and they have sex. Meanwhile, Gully takes Banjo to the woods and executes him.
16	6	"The Rose and Thorn"	Jon East	Bruno Heller	March 14, 2021 (2021-03-14)
Alfred buys three tickets to America from the money gained in the robbery. He tells Sandra he is leaving and breaks up with her. Prime Minister Aziz and the Queen recruit him for one last job against his will by blackmailing him with their knowledge that he had a fling with Melanie (Mrs. Gully). Alfred, Daveboy and Martha spring Lucius Fox from the Raven Union though it is a bloodshed. Alfred's mum reconciles with him and agrees to accompany him to America, if he abstains from further violence there. Lucius tells Thomas that Stormcloud is ready within a week and could kill everyone in London via a fear-induced chemical attack, but Thomas can do little but warn CIA upper management. Martha is revealed to be pregnant with Thomas' child. Meanwhile, Aziz manipulates Ripper (who wants his position) and Alistair Crowley against each other, which ends with Ripper confronting Crowley to threaten him, but ends up with Ripper drugged and institutionalized as he has terrifying hallucinations and cannot tell fantasy from reality. In the Raven Union, Salt manipulates an eager young lieutenant to speak up for Mrs. Gaunt, while also further drugging and manipulating Harwood, who makes him a baronet and names him chief advisor. Under the influence of the drugs, Lord Harwood has a mental breakdown and beats the lieutenant to death, and is locked up, allowing Salt to take over.
17	7	"The Bloody Mary"	Catherine Morshead	Jimmy Dowdall	March 21, 2021 (2021-03-21)
The CIA forbids Thomas and Lucius to alert the League about Stormcloud - as long as the US government doesn't know about a chemical weapon, they won't intervene and they want the conflict resolved quickly. Against their orders, they go to Martha and give the footage to Aziz, both of them deciding to stay in England. Thomas decides to go to medical school. Meanwhile, Alfred is approached by Gully with a job offer, but declines. Gully, suspicious of him, attacks Melanie and tries to kill her, but she wounds him and escapes to Alfred. He buys her a ticket as well, but in the end decides to stay in England and fight, his mother and Daveboy staying with him. Melanie boards the plane to America with Patricia Wayne. In Harwood manor, Bet and Peg Sykes overpower the guards and try to rescue Lord Harwood, but get surrounded by the army. Realizing that with him dead, Salt will not have the legitimacy to lead the Raven Union, Lord Harwood pretends he wants to surrender to Salt directly, but then draws his weapon on him calling him a traitor and gets shot dead, distracting the army for the Sykes sisters to escape.
18	8	"The Hangman's Noose"	Catherine Morshead	Seth Sinclair	March 28, 2021 (2021-03-28)
After Lord Harwood's funeral in London, Salt demands the unconditional surrender of the Queen, threatening to unleash Stormcloud. Martha tells Thomas she is pregnant, but refuses when he wishes to marry her. Bet and Peg kidnap Vikki, Salt's mistress, but Katie talks Bet out of hurting her. Alfred goes to visit Gully and resolve things, but his gang ambushes him. Gully leads Alfred to the woods, stabs him then hunts him. While wounded, Alfred gets the upper hand after creating a trap from branches, however he refuses to kill Gully. Delirious from his wound, he swears to an apparition of Bazza that he wants to make a difference and serve a higher purpose. Daveboy and Mrs Pennyworth arrive and save Alfred. Meanwhile, the Raven Union high council elects Salt as Chancellor, and it’s revealed that Alfred's father is alive, bound to a life-support wheelchair.
19	9	"Paradise Lost"	Rob Bailey	Hannah Boschi	April 4, 2021 (2021-04-04)
Thomas, Martha and Lucius approach Alfred for assistance in breaking into the Raven Union to steal Stormcloud much to Mrs. Pennyworth’s disapproval. Alfred finds Sandra and makes love with her before embarking on the mission. Martha seemingly agrees to Thomas’s proposal of marriage. Bet and Peg force Vikki to arrange a meeting with Salt. Alfred manages to secure Stormcloud and escape but not before Salt captures them. Salt sends Mr. Pennyworth to talk with Alfred to his disbelief. Alfred refuses his offer to join the Raven Union. Meanwhile, Bet and Peg locate and free Mrs Gaunt. While escaping, Bet runs into Alfred and releases them before parting ways. Alfred and the team fail to escape and gets trapped again. Salt grants Mr. Pennyworth another chance to persuade Alfred to join the Union. Mr. Pennyworth betrays the Union as Alfred kills the guards and they steal Stormcloud before leaving the Raven Union compound. On the way out, Alfred calls Aziz to inform him about their success.
20	10	"The Lion and Lamb"	Rob Bailey	Bruno Heller	April 11, 2021 (2021-04-11)
Mrs Pennyworth learns her husband is still alive. While everyone celebrates at the League HQ, Gully storms in looking for Alfred and accidentally breaks the capsule, revealing it to be inactive. Salt reveals Stormcloud is already in London and arrests General Thursday, intending to detonate it despite the League's surrender. Martha says yes to Thomas and Aziz marries them on the spot. Having second thoughts about letting his family die for his cause, Mr Pennyworth tells Alfred Stormcloud was smuggled into London inside Lord Harwood's coffin. Alfred and Daveboy locate the bomb and Lucius tries to inactivate it. Meanwhile, Salt is attacked by the Sykes sisters in his penthouse and beaten up, but manages to get the detonator and trigger it. Alfred offers to swallow the capsule, but Gully volunteers - the detonation is averted, but he turns blue and dies. Mr Pennyworth says goodbye to his wife and then unplugs his life support to pass away. 6 months later, the New Raven Alliance, led by Frances Gaunt, assaults London, while Martha gives birth to a baby girl. Alfred leads the counterattack with Daveboy, Bet and Kathie, and are joined by a revived Gully who now has life-draining powers.

Production

Jack Bannon as a young Alfred Pennyworth

Development

On May 16, 2018, it was announced that Epix had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes. The pilot episode was expected to be written by Bruno Heller and directed by Danny Cannon, both of whom were also set to executive produce the series. Production companies that were slated to be involved with the series include Warner Horizon Television. On February 6, 2019, it was announced during the Television Critics Association's annual winter press tour that the series would premiere in June 2019. On April 24, 2019, the premiere date was revised to July 28, 2019, on Epix.

Series two was confirmed on October 27, 2019, to begin filming in January 2020. The second series premiered on December 13, 2020.

Casting

In October 2018, it was announced that Jack Bannon, Ben Aldridge, Ryan Fletcher, Hainsley Lloyd Bennett, Paloma Faith, and Jason Flemyng had been cast in series regular roles. On December 4, 2018, it was reported that Polly Walker had joined the cast in a recurring capacity.

On March 20, 2019, Emma Paetz and Jessica Ellerby were cast in the series as Martha Kane and The Queen, respectively.

Filming

Principal photography for the series commenced on October 22, 2018 at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, England. Additionally, a number of shots were taken in London, including selecting the landmark building Florin Court as the home and neighbourhood of one of the series lead characters. Various scenes were filmed at the Dockyard Chatham in Kent, where the streets stood in for East London in the 1960s. Principal photography for the series wrapped on May 24, 2019.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 73% based on 30 reviews, with an average rating of 7.33/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "While intriguing characters and impressive set-pieces make for an engaging spy-thriller, Pennyworth doesn't add much to the greater Batman mythos". On Metacritic the series has a weighted average score of 60% based on reviews from 9 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Writing for The A.V. Club, Sam Barsanti gives the program a C, noting:

[Pennyworth] would almost be more entertaining if you changed some of the names and jettisoned the comic book connection entirely—at least then there'd be no distracting questions about why Thomas Wayne has a sister and why he's secretly working for the government instead of becoming a rich doctor back home. As it stands, though, the show is as entertaining as it is frustrating, feeling sort of like an adaptation of a comic based on Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes movies (with all of the Britishness that implies).

Broadcast

In the United States, the series premiered on July 28, 2019, on Epix. In Canada, the series premiered on Showcase on September 4, 2019, six weeks behind the Epix schedule. Pennyworth season one received its UK premiere on StarzPlay on Friday, October 25, 2019. The series is moving to HBO Max starting with its third season with Epix receiving a second-run window.

Tie-in comic

A tie-in comic of the titular character, set after the events of the show during the Cold War, was released in August 2021. The story is written by Scott Bryan Wilson with interior art duties handled by Juan Gedeon.

External links

• Pennyworth at IMDb