Pennyworth Star Says Martha Kane Is a "Huge Part of the Show"

The upcoming Batman prequel series on Epix, Pennyworth, is a show devoted to the dark and dangerous origins of Batman's iconic butler, Alfred. That said, the trusty adviser isn't the only classic DC character set to appear in this prequel series. Thomas Wayne, the man who eventually becomes Bruce Wayne's father, was announced as a main character of the series early on. Martha Kane, Bruce's mother, was also cast on the show a while back, but there wasn't too much made of her role. Well, as it turns out, Martha will be a much bigger deal in Pennyworth than anyone expected.

Last week during San Diego Comic-Con, the creators a few stars of Pennyworth stopped by to talk with ComicBook.com about their upcoming series. When we asked Ben Aldridge, who plays Thomas Wayne, about his role, he explained just how pivotal it was to give the character more of a backstory. He also noted that his relationship to Martha would become a much bigger deal as the season goes on.

"So I guess we've never seen him before, or the beginnings of him, so that's the interesting thing about it, it's going right back. He's contained in the comic books to him being murdered, basically," said Aldridge. "I think [producer] Bruno [Heller] stayed faithful to elements of the character in that he's very moral, very upstanding. In our version of it, where in the comic books he's working in medicine, he's caught up in a covert world in Pennyworth. A bit more underground. He still has that strong moral compass but he has to question it a lot. There are some things that come up in the show where he has to make some compromising decisions against things that he believes in."

"He's one half of what goes in to become Batman, that's been a really great thing reading the scripts," he continued. "And Martha Kane is a huge part of the show as well as it progresses, so its the beginnings and the sparks of their chemistry and how they meet as well. So that's been an exciting thing to read and be part of."

Emma Paetz is set to play Martha Kane on Pennyworth, and she becomes a major character in the series after the first couple of episodes.

Could the first season of Pennyworth actually reveal how Batman's parents got together? We'll find out once the series premieres on July 28th on Epix.