Andy Serkis hints that Alfred is central to the story in The Batman

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

THE BATMAN was one of many films in production that were halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since shooting went dark on the project, the film's release date was shifted from June 2021 to October of the same year. A lot of THE BATMAN is being kept under wraps but Andy Serkis, who plays  Alfred Pennyworth in the highly anticipated film, is giving us a few tidbits about what we can expect from Matt Reeves' take on The Dark Knight.

Andy Serkis did an interview with "LADbible" and revealed that the Alfred and Bruce Wayne relationship is central to the overall story of the film:

"It's very much about the emotional connection between Alfred and Bruce. That's really at the center of it. And it is a really exquisite script that Matt has written."

Serkis was also asked if the film would be darker and broodier than previous entries and Serkis said: "I would say that's not far from the truth." Serkis didn't go into further details beyond that but I'm guessing we're getting a film similar in tone to Christopher Nolan's DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY and perhaps even darker. Speaking of Nolan's films, Serkis is aware that other actors have tackled the role of Alfred before him including Jeremy Irons, Michael Gough, and Michael Caine but Serkis says he will be doing his own thing with the role but he does respect what Michael Caine brought to it:

"He [Michael Caine] was fantastic. His Alfred was legendary. I couldn't even begin to go there, really. You find it for yourself. It's like playing these iconic roles in Shakespeare, you go back, you revisit them and you have to make it your own, and see what it is about the character that connects with you and your personal Venn diagram."

Andy Serkis also revealed that he was halfway through shooting his part of the film when production of THE BATMAN came to a halt. Despite the delay, Serkis says "it's going to be a beautiful film" and he seems pretty excited to be a part of it. Serkis is likely going to be busy in the months ahead. He directed VENOM 2, now known as VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE, and that film was pushed from October of this year to June 25, 2021, oddly enough, the old release date for THE BATMAN. I'm sure Serkis can now focus on diving into post-production on VENOM as he awaits word on when THE BATMAN will resume shooting. The new release date for that film is now set for October 1, 2021.

How do YOU think Andy Serkis will measure up to previous portrayals of Alfred? How central to the story should he be?