The Alfred Pennyworth ‘Batman’ Spin-Off Mocked In The ‘Teen Titans’ Trailer Is Actually Becoming A Show

We know this sounds like a joke, especially since less than a month ago Warner Bros. already made fun of the concept in their “Teen Titans GO! to the Movies” trailer, but we’re about to get a “Batman” spin-off focusing on his butler Alfred Pennyworth.

Seriously.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Epix just put in a straight-to-series order for 10 episodes of “Pennyworth,” the latest “Batman” property to come to TV. For those concerned that “Pennyworth” would be a boring show about an older butler to a billionaire, don’t worry, it almost sounds worse! “Pennyworth” is going back in time to Alfred’s younger years, as a former British SAS soldier who goes into business with Thomas Wayne, aka Bruce’s dad, in 1960s London. Yep, so expect James Bond-meets-Batman action courtesy of Alfred Pennyworth.

The series is being developed by Bruno Heller, who has plenty of “Batman” prequel experience as the creator and showrunner for Fox’s “Gotham.” Yep, the guy who created the abomination known as “Gotham” is being handed another ‘Batman’ prequel. That series, which followed a young Bruce Wayne and Jim Gordon as they deal with the rise of Gotham’s costumed criminals, also featured a badass Alfred. However, the report states that “Pennyworth” will not be linked to “Gotham,” and Heller isn’t going to bring on that series’ Alfred, actor Sean Pertwee.

Heller is bringing along Danny Cannon to direct the pilot, as he did for “Gotham.” So even though there’s no shared universe business going on, you can expect that “Pennyworth” will have a similar look to the other “Batman” prequel, for better or worse.

“As genuine fans of these classic DC characters, as well as the incredibly talented Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon, we couldn’t be more excited to make Epix the home of this series,” said Epix president Michael Wright. “We can’t wait to work with Bruno and Danny — along with Peter Roth, Susan Rovner, Brett Paul and the team at Warner Horizon — on this fantastic origin story.”

Heller and Cannon added, “Michael and his colleagues have created the perfect venue for original storytelling, and all of us working on ‘Pennyworth’ are thrilled to be on the Epix slate.”

In 20 years, when we look back at the era of Peak Superhero TV, one might point to “Pennyworth” as the sign of oversaturation. Because, frankly, Heller doesn’t necessarily inspire the most confidence with how “Gotham” turned out. However, maybe we’ll get a pretty fun spy show out of the deal.

Just please don’t resort to introducing the ‘60s-era Joker to spice up ratings.