Alfred Pennyworth

> I certainly hope the next generation of Waynes won't come to inherit an empty wine cellar. Not that there's likely to *be* a next generation...
>
> Alfred Pennyworth, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

**Alfred Crane Pennyworth** is the butler, mentor, surrogate father, and close friend of Bruce Wayne. Alfred has served the Wayne family since before Bruce was born. After Bruce was left orphaned from the murder of both of his parents when he was a boy, Alfred watched over him as a parental figure, watching him grow and mature, and assisting him in his quest to become the Batman.

He later assisted Batman when he fought Superman, and when he fought Doomsday in Gotham Port along with Superman and Wonder Woman, and was successful. Two years after that, he assisted Batman again when the Justice League tried to stop Steppenwolf's attempt to terraform Earth, an attempt which yielded success.

## Biography

### Early life

#### SAS training

Alfred was born in the United Kingdom, in the middle of the 20th century. As a young man, he would join his country's armed forces, and shortly thereafter, the SAS Special Forces, where Alfred would receive training in intelligence gathering, field medicine, weaponry, as well as the ability to pilot all sorts of vehicles and aircraft.

#### Employed by the Waynes

At some point, Alfred retired from the British Armed Force and moved to the United States of America, where he became the butler and bodyguard to Thomas Wayne and his wife Martha, billionaire philanthropists from Gotham City. Sometime later, they had their only child, Bruce, whom Alfred would come to mentor.

#### Raising and mentoring Bruce

In 1981, the Waynes were murdered by a mugger, whilst taking a young Bruce to see a showing of *"The Mark of Zorro"* at the Aragon Theater, and Alfred was placed as the legal guardian to Bruce. The young boy's anger at the death of his parents and the blame he placed on himself was apparent to see, and he proclaimed that he would rid Gotham City of the criminal and the corrupt, and asked Alfred for his help.

#### "The Batman"

> One misses the days when one's biggest concerns were exploding wind-up penguins.
>
> Alfred about Batman's previous exploits, Justice League (film)

Bruce would stay true to his word, eventually becoming the vigilante "Batman" as an adult, with Alfred's SAS training allowing him to help Bruce build his numerous high-tech gadgets, to operate the Batcomputer, and to give Bruce pertinent advice during the latter's missions in his one-man anti-crime crusade.

### Helping Bruce

#### The *White Portuguese*

 File:Alfred building.jpg

> We're criminals, Alfred. We've always been criminals. Nothing's changed."
> "Oh, yes it has, sir. Everything's changed. Men fall from the sky, the gods hurl thunderbolts, innocents die. That's how it starts, sir. The fever, the rage, the feeling of powerlessness that turns good men... cruel.
>
> Bruce and Alfred, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

18 months after the Black Zero Event, and 20 years after becoming Batman, Alfred and Bruce continued their mission to combat organized crime in Gotham City as well as preparing countermeasures against the perceived threat of Superman. Alfred operated on the Armored Batsuit while he and Bruce discussed Anatoli Knyazev and his connection to the *White Portuguese*, though Alfred himself speculated that this person might not even actually exist, instead being a mere "phantasm".

#### Lex Luthor's fundraiser

> The Bat interrogated six people and came away with nothing. It was Bruce Wayne that got the information."
>  "Well, Bruce Wayne can't break into Lex Luthor's house."
>  "Bruce Wayne won't have to. He's been invited.
>
> Bruce and Alfred, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

When Bruce Wayne was invited to a social gathering by Lex Luthor, Alfred guided him via earpiece through Lex's mansion and plants a data drive in Lex's computer servers to extract information regarding the *White Portuguese*. However, Diana Prince steals the drive and leaves before Bruce or Alfred could decrypt it.

#### Conflict with Bruce

 File:Al.jpeg

> But he is not our enemy!"
> "Not today. 20 years in Gotham, Alfred - we've seen what promises are worth. How many good guys are left? How many stayed that way?
>
> Alfred and Bruce, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

Later, after Diana returns the drive to Bruce, he decrypts the drive and tells Alfred that the *White Portuguese* is actually the name of a ship carrying a large nugget of Kryptonite from the wreckage of the World Engine to Lex Luthor, which is capable of significantly weakening Superman. Alfred vehemently protests Bruce's decision to combat Superman, believing that he is not an enemy of humanity. He pleads to Bruce to change his mind, saying that it would be suicide to try to kill the Man of Steel, though Bruce remains stubborn.

#### US Capitol bombing

When the Capital bombing occurs, Alfred sees it on the news in the Glasshouse and also sees the checks that Wallace Keefe sent back with hate messages. Alfred realizes that Bruce has snapped, and can only look on as the latter prepares for his battle.

#### Second conflict with Bruce

 File:Alfred and Bruce.jpg

> You know you can't win this – it's suicide.
>
> Alfred, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

With his physical preparation complete, Bruce retreats to mentally prepare for his duel with Superman at the abandoned Wayne Manor, where he is found by Alfred, who once more attempts to implore Bruce to stop, claiming that Batman cannot win such a confrontation, with it being "suicide".

Bruce grimly responds saying that he is now older than his father Thomas Wayne had ever been, and that this might be the only thing that he does which actually matters, since despite Batman having defeated numerous Gotham City criminals and supervillains over the last 20 years, "criminals are like weeds", in that if 1 is pulled up, another grows in its place. While Superman has the potential to become the most formidable supervillain in history, taking him down before that happens is "about the future of the world", something Bruce sees as "Batman's legacy".

Bruce then grimly muses at how his father had once told him that despite the Wayne Manor itself being built on railways, real estates and oil, the first generation of Waynes had made their fortune as hunters, trading pelts and skins with the French. Thus, Bruce not only hopes to live up to his father by taking Superman down, but also feels kinship with his ancestors, as a hunter of sorts. As Bruce walks away, Alfred, understanding that trying to stop the former is hopeless, bitterly remarks "So falls the House of Wayne."

#### Rescue of Martha Kent

> I don't deserve you, Alfred."
> "No, sir, you don't.
>
> Bruce and Alfred, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

After the fight between Batman and Superman is resolved, Alfred tracks down Knyazev's cellphone to a portside warehouse in Gotham where Martha Kent is being held. Batman flies the Batwing towards the safehouse, and Alfred scans the warehouse to find 24 mercenaries on the third floor guarding Martha. He then takes remote control of the Batwing and lands Batman on the second floor, who then proceeds to neutralize all the men, seemingly kill Knyazev, and rescue Martha.

### War for Earth

#### Assembling the Justice League

> No attacks, no barbarians at the gate"
> "Maybe these barbarians don't use a gate.
>
> Bruce and Alfred Pennyworth, Zack Snyder's Justice League

After Arthur Curry/Aquaman refused Bruce's offer, he and Alfred got back on the jet and headed back to Gotham City. While on the jet, they began to go over the other members for the team like Barry Allen, Diana, and Victor Stone discussing their character backgrounds and powers, while Alfred tells Bruce that he shouldn't listen to Lex's warning.

While Bruce is recruiting Barry Allen, Alfred instructs Diana on how to make tea and shows her the new gauntlet he is working on, Diana jokes about it's similarity to her own bracelets, telling Alfred that he should work on a Lasso for Bruce, "in black, of course."

When Diana was reviewing footage of Victor Stone, Alfred told her that footage always gets a little twitchy which then led to Victor speaking on the Batcomputer. Diana then convinced Victor to meet with her, while Alfred jokingly remarks, "Looks like you have a date tonight."

#### Skirmish under Gotham Harbor

> Where are we, Alfred?"
> "Braxton Island. You should be... directly under the venting tower for the tunnel.
>
> Batman and Alfred Pennyworth, Justice League (film)

When the Justice League had reached Stryker's Island, Alfred then gave them directions into the machine room where the hostages were being held. He then assists Batman by taking control of the Knightcrawler and bringing it to him in order for Batman to fight Steppenwolf and the Parademons. Cyborg then responds to him and takes over the Knightcrawler with Alfred left confused wondering who he was.

#### Superman's resurrection

> You've got a team here."
> "Superman could bring this team together better than I ever could. His strength--"
> "It doesn't matter how strong you are. Or what abilities you might have..."
> "He was more human than I am. He lived in this world. Fell in love. Had a job. Despite all that power. The world needs Superman. And the team needs Clark."
> "And what does Clark need? Maybe he's at peace."
> "He'll get over it.
>
> Alfred Pennyworth and Bruce Wayne, Justice League (film)

Just as Bruce was working on integrating and boosting the alarm sound that alerted the parademons, Alfred comes in, bringing a cucumber drink. They begin to discuss whether or not to bring Superman back to life or why Bruce thinks the team might not be enough.

#### Battle of Pozharnov

> Whatever you're in the middle of, it's spreading for miles. Satellites show civilians moving east. They're not gonna make it.
>
> Alfred Pennyworth to Batman, Justice League (film)

Discovering that Steppenwolf planned on combining the Mother Boxes near a village located in Russia, the Justice League had gone to stop him by taking the Flying Fox. As the five heroes approached inside the airplane and it flew off, Alfred watched that.

While Batman drove the Batmobile to alert the Parademons with the same alarm, Alfred, still in the Batcave, tuned it right up.

Alfred then informs Batman that people are in danger, which he tells Flash that he needs to save the civilians.

#### A new world

 File:Justice League 2017 new base of operations.jpg
After stopping the invasion of Parademons led by Steppenwolf, Wayne and Pennyworth started planning to rebuild the Manor as the headquarters for the Justice League and its potential future recruits, with the help from Diana Prince.

## Personality

> Go upstairs and socialize, some young lady from Metropolis will make you honest... In your dreams, Alfred.
>
> Alfred Pennyworth, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

A traditional English gentleman, Alfred always keeps a stiff upper lip, even under the extraordinary circumstances imposed by his master's secret identity. No matter what the situation, Alfred always responds with resolve, equanimity, and good (albeit somewhat sarcastic and dry) humor.

Though he and Bruce do occasionally quarrel (notably when Alfred insisted that Superman is not their enemy), Alfred's loyalty remains absolute. Partially this could be explained by his continued loyalty to Thomas Wayne, and a traditional sense of duty to one's master. At the same time, Alfred finds ways to express his pride in Bruce, and his belief in the cause he is fighting for as the fearsome vigilante "Batman".

Alfred is remarkably wise, observant and perceptive, as he is able to understand that it is Bruce's "feelings of powerlessness" that changed the latter quite a bit, he is able to see that Superman is not humanity's enemy and adamantly tries to convince Bruce of that, and he is one of the extreme few (along with supergenius Lex Luthor) to see through Bruce's exceptionally skilled deceptions, as Alfred wasn't fooled when Bruce initially attempts to lie to him about the Kryptonite importation.

## Abilities

> "I don't deserve you, Alfred."
> "No, sir, you don't.
>
> Batman and Alfred Pennyworth, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

* **Gifted Intellect**: Alfred is exceptionally intelligent, which extends to his considerable investigative, analytical, communications, computer operating, engineering, and medical skills, as well as those in ordinary housekeeping and cooking, which makes Alfred remarkably eclectic, often able to keep up with genius polymath Batman himself.
	+ **Expert Tactician**: Alfred regularly assists Bruce on the latter's various missions as Batman, offering his own tactical input and advice if necessary. Alfred notably pin-pointed the imprisoned Martha Kent's location by tracking Anatoli Knyazev's cloned phone to a warehouse, all before Batman himself had thought to do so.
	+ **Expert Engineer**: Alfred is highly skilled in vehicles' operations, computer operations, and general engineering, as he was trained in weapons and maintenance of all sorts of vehicles and aircraft while in the SAS special forces. Thus, Alfred assists Batman in building and over time improving upon the latter's various sophisticated gadgets in the Batcave, most notably, the Batmobile, standard Batsuit, and Batcomputer.
	+ **Expert Computer Scientist**: Alfred is exceptionally skilled in computer science, thus regularly assisting Batman on missions by efficiently operating the Batcomputer and filling the latter in on pertinent data, such as the internal layout of the building at Lex Luthor's fundraiser, or the amount of henchmen Anatoli Knyazev had awaiting Batman in a warehouse.
	+ **Expert Detective**: Alfred, while seemingly not quite on par with Batman himself, is a highly skilled investigator (employing both inductive and deductive reasoning), analyst, and spy, due to his intelligence background as a member of the British SAS special forces, where he was specifically trained in intelligence gathering. Thus, Alfred is remarkably observant and perceptive, as he is able to understand that it is Bruce's "feelings of powerlessness" that changed the latter quite a bit, he is able to see that Superman is not humanity's enemy and adamantly tries to convince Bruce of that, and he is one of the extreme few (along with supergenius Lex Luthor) to see through Bruce's exceptionally skilled deceptions, as Alfred wasn't fooled when Bruce initially attempts to lie to him about the Kryptonite importation.
	+ **Expert Medic**: Alfred is an exceptionally efficient personal doctor and surgeon to the Batman, due to him being trained in medicine while in the SAS special forces.
	+ **Communications Expert**: Alfred is highly skilled at communications, with him therefore regularly operating as Bruce's chief communications officer (CCO) in Wayne Enterprises.
	+ **Expert Butler**: Alfred while without metahuman powers, is an extremely skilled and experienced butler, having first served as one to Thomas and Martha Wayne, and then to their son Bruce, with him being extraordinarily competent in all of his duties (both as butler and head of security) necessary to help maintain, assist and support Batman's life, including housekeeping and cooking.
* **Expert Driver**: Alfred is a highly skilled driver and pilot, due to him having been trained in piloting all sorts of vehicles and aircraft while in the SAS special forces. Hence, he effectively pilots Batman's Batwing from a distance, while simultaneously observing a Batcomputer thermal imaging scan of the building he was piloting it towards.

## Equipment

As the long-term butler and head of security of Batman, Alfred has access to Wayne Enterprises technology, some of the most sophisticated technology in the world (most of it located in the hidden Batcave under Wayne Manor), with Alfred personally helping Bruce create the equipment that is crucial to him as Batman.

 File:Bruce Wayne and Alfred Pennyworth at the computers.jpg
* **Batcomputer**: Batman's giant and powerful multi-purpose supercomputer console, located in the Batcave, with several monitor screens. Among other things, one of its monitors is equipped with thermal imaging, allowing Alfred to easily deduce the number of Knyazev's people within a building from a distance. It is also constantly hooked up to police radio's from the Gotham City Police Department, as well as news stations, allowing Alfred to remotely help Batman be up to date with all the goings on in his city. When Batman is on one of his vigilante escapades, Alfred sometimes utilizes the Batcomputer to help the Dark Knight with a specific task, notably when Batman saved Martha Kent from Anatoli Knyazev.
* **Batwing**: Batman's aerial combat prototype vehicle with an immense amount of firepower, with Alfred notably assisting him in remotely piloting it, from within the Batcave.

## Relationships

Family* Bruce Wayne/Batman - surrogate son, ward, and master

Allies* Wayne Manor
	+ Thomas Wayne † - former employer and former master
	+ Martha Wayne †
* Justice League - friends
	+ Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman
	+ Diana Prince/Wonder Woman - guest
	+ Arthur Curry/Aquaman
	+ Barry Allen/Flash
	+ Victor Stone/Cyborg
* Gotham City Police Department
	+ James Gordon
* Lois Lane
* Dick Grayson/Robin †
* Joker
* Harleen Quinzel/Harley Quinn
* Cesar Santos †
* LexCorp
	+ Lex Luthor
	+ Anatoli Knyazev †
* Doomsday †
* Darkseid
* Steppenwolf
* Parademons

## Behind the scenes

* The end credits sequence of the film *Shazam!* briefly contains an animated sequence that seemingly flips through Freddy Freeman's cartoon sketches. The sketches include a sequence showing a cartoon Batman screaming "Alfred!!" as well as a cartoon depiction of what appears to be the butler. Since the animated sketches are clearly meant to be Freddy's sketches, it is unknown how Freddy would have found out about Alfred Pennyworth and his relation to Batman.
* This version is different to most portrayals of Alfred because this iteration of the character is more based on Geoff Johns' Earth-One version of the character, as opposed to other versions of Alfred have been shown to act more protective to Bruce.
* Before Jeremy Irons was cast, former James Bond actor Timothy Dalton was rumored to be in talks for the role of Alfred Pennyworth.
* Alfred Pennyworth in the DC Extended Universe is the ninth live-action incarnation of the character, following incarnations portrayed by Alan Napier, William Austin, Eric Wilton, Michael Gough, Ian Abercrombie, Michael Caine and Sean Pertwee.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Kogge, Michael (February 16, 2016). *Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – Cross Fire*. United States: Scholastic.
2. ↑ *Guide to the Caped Crusader/Guide to the Man of Steel*
3. ↑ *Justice League: The Official Guide*
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 *Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice*
5. ↑ Newell, Adam, Gosling, Sharon (March 22, 2016). *Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: Tech Manual*. United States: Titan Books.
Terrio, Chris, Whedon, Joss (writers) & Snyder, Zack (director) (November 17, 2017). *Justice League*.

## External links

The ***DC Extended Universe Wiki** has a collection of images and media related to* **Alfred Pennyworth***.*
* File:Favicon.png Alfred Pennyworth on DC Database
* File:WP favicon.png Alfred Pennyworth on Wikipedia

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