Andy Serkis Returning As Alfred the Butler

We’ve confirmed that Andy Serkis will reprise his role as Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne’s butler, in Matt Reeves’ follow-up The Batman II which commences shooting in June in London.

Essentially, what required solving was reconciling Serkis’ production days on DC Studio’s The Batman II with that of the next New Line film he’s prepping, Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, due out on Dec. 17, 2027. Looks like he’s going to make both shoots work.

Serkis has been doing press for the Angel Studios’ animated movie of late, Animal Farm, which he directed. Collider got to him first and asked him whether Batman II was in the cards, who the man who played Sméagol telling the outlet, “I’m pretty certain it’s all going to work out. Yeah, we’re working on it, but I think it’s all looking good.” Per Screen Rant, Serkis said he “won’t be joining them immediately,” them being Batman II, but “by the end of the year, I will be”.

Serkis will join a cast in Batman II that includes Robert Pattinson returning as the Caped Crusader, Colin Farrell as The Penguin, Scarlett Johansson, and Sebastian Stan as Harvey Dent.

The Batman repped Warner Bros return to theatrical after its day-and-date Covid experiment, ‘Popcorn Project’. The movie opened to $134M domestic and went on to make $369.8M stateside and over $772M worldwide. The feature spawned an HBO Max series, The Penguin, which won nine Emmys including one for Cristin Milioti in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie category. Farrell would go on to win the Actors Awards, Golden Globe and Critics Choice for his turn as the title character.

Serkis is repped by CAA and Principal Entertainment LA. Animal Farm opens on May 1.