Epix’s Batman prequel Pennyworth was a pleasant surprise for comics fans last year. Some of the cast and one of its showrunners, Bruno Heller, came to NYCC Metaverse to give some hints at the second season. Paloma Faith, Jack Bannon, and Ben Aldridge were the cast members in attendance.
Notably, Pennyworth is in production just outside of London, in the Warner Bros. Studios. Heller expressed his happiness at that after production had been delayed due to the pandemic. Bannon noted that the studio was doing a good job of keeping people healthy during this time. As for moving from the first season to the second, Heller said that “finding the fun” was important since they’ve found their footing now.
The pandemic allowed for more work on the scripts, which Heller noted is a luxury in television. They’re also finding ways to work within the safety protocols in a way that will make sense for a show like Pennyworth. He said it feels it like doing a stage play, much more focused on the actors than, presumably, large action set pieces involving crowds.
The second season picks up after the first season’s finale a whole year later. A successful coup has been accomplished, which means England is in the midst of a civil war, and it’s clear who the good and bad guys are. The characters will be under siege in London.
Bannon noted that after the events of the first season, Alfred’s reactions to everything change drastically. The beginning of the story was about changing Alfred from a boy to a man, and his view of the world will change accordingly. According to Faith, Bet will have a more personal storyline this season, questioning whether she has any respect for those she works for at the Raven Society.
DC FanDome introduced that Martha is pregnant in the second season, while Thomas is pledged to someone who isn’t Martha. Heller clarified that Thomas is being forced into the engagement by his parents. Heller also said he considers Pennyworth to fit into the timeline established by the TV show Gotham, which he also ran. He did have a caveat though, noting that a show is only canon if it’s accepted by the audience as canon.
There will be more historical cameos, like George Orwell. Lucius Fox will be making an appearance, fighting with the bad guys at first, with a major plot being how he becomes a good guy.
The second season of Pennyworth will premiere on December 13th at 9 PM EST on Epix. However, only the first four episodes will premiere, with the remaining six airing later in 2021. A teaser was released shortly before the panel; see below!
The rest of the panel, which saw them discussing the characters’ growth and their relationship to the future of Batman can be checked out below.
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