Justice League is out Friday (November 17), and you’d be forgiven for thinking the movie’s stand-out hero would be one of Batman (Ben Affleck), Superman (Henry Cavill), Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), The Flash (Ezra Miller), Aquaman (Jason Momoa) or Cyborg (Ray Fisher).
Not so, says its other star Jeremy Irons.
Unsurprisingly, he contends the film’s true superhero is the one he plays: Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne’s unflappable butler and chief of security.
The role has previously been played by acting greats such as Michael Gough in the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher series of Batman films, Michael Caine in The Dark Knight, and Ralph Fiennes in Lego Batman, not to mention Jeremy in 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
Jeremy’s take is a little more modern than the buttoned-up butler in those earlier films. Gone are the bowtie and silver tray; this Alfred is a tech-savvy action man in turtleshell glasses.
In an interview with Seth Meyers last night (November 15), he explained just who inspired his portrayal:
Later in the interview, Jeremy chatted about his castle in Ireland, his pet dog Smudge, and the role that gets him noticed most by children: Scar in The Lion King.
“It’s wonderful,” he says, heartwarmingly, about the children and their parents who come up to him asking for a rendition. Then he adds in a typically Scar-fashion: “because it keeps the kids away from me.”
Oh. “I’m surrounded by idiots,” indeed.
Who’s your favorite Alfred Pennyworth?