Jeremy Irons On His Role In Justice League And The Batman Movie

We're going to see more Alfred on the big screen soon, as Jeremy Irons returns to the role in Justice League in 2017, and again in the upcoming film The Batman, which will star and be directed by Ben Affleck (who is also co-writing it with DC Entertainment president and CCO and DC Films co-head Geoff Johns). The esteemed actor brings his gravitas to the role, challenging Affleck's Bruce Wayne/Batman.

"I love working with Ben and Zack Snyder," Irons told Variety in a recent interview. "They've been fun."

The actor says that Alfred's presence in Justice League is "similar" to how much screentime he had in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but was able to tease a bit about his following appearance.

"Then, of course, Ben's going to make a Batman film next summer. He promises me there's going to be a bit more of Alfred in that," the actor said. "In the Justice League we have seven major lead characters, and I'm the butler to one of them. It's clear I will not be dominating that film."

As for the poor critical reception to Batman v Superman, Irons was not bothered "at all," and was "very pleased by the numbers." He seemed to genuinely be perplexed by the "hard time" Snyder gets from the press, but was just glad "the audience liked it."

Irons' take on Alfred was focused on a background many fans may not know about the character: he's former British special forces, something that's only been touched on lightly in most interpretations of the character (though Gotham and the Geoff Johns-written Batman: Earth One graphic novels both focus on this more, too).

"I remember an evening with Paul Getty, who was a neighbor of mine, now sadly dead. We drove up to his lovely house. A very nice gentleman opened up the car door. Then another very nice gentleman took the car and parked it somewhere. Another nice gentleman took my coat. And then another nice gentleman gave me a glass of champagne. And all those nice gentleman were SAS. I thought, that's Alfred. He's a man who will take care of his boss, whether he's making coffee or pouring champagne or flying his airplane," Irons said.

Indeed, Alfred's past with the SAS is meant to explain his affinity for so many useful skills in Batman's war against crime. He can patch up Batman due to field training, he knows how to handle his own in a fight, and can play tactical command roles, all thanks to his time in the military.

Irons can also be seen in the upcoming Assassin's Creed in December of this year. Justice League hits theaters November 17, 2017.