Pennyworth Creator Addresses Move to HBO Max, Adding Origin of Batman's Butler Subtitle

Pennyworth finally returns for its third season this week, but the DC TV series will have a new home and title. The series is now officially called Pennyworth: The Origins of Batman's Butler, and it is no longer an original to the Epix network. Pennyworth's third season, debuting on October 6th, will be released exclusively on HBO Max, a significantly bigger platform. For series creator Bruno Heller, both changes are great for the series.

Ahead of Thursday's Season 3 premiere, Heller spoke to Deadline about the big changes facing the DC series. he first addressed the move to HBO Max, TV offerings to items on the shelf at a supermarket. On HBO Max, Pennyworth is now around bigger, more prominent titles, making it more appealing.

"Years ago, people had very few choices. Now it's much more like a supermarket," Heller explained. "I don't mean to be crass about this, but you're on a shelf and where you are on the shelf becomes very important in a way that it wasn't before. So platforms matter. We are just very excited to be in the center aisle, in the middle of shelf, next to the cornflakes instead of up there with the maple honey granola with soy granules in it. All of those cereals have an audience, but you get a bigger audience if you're next to the Frosted Flakes."

The new, full-length title for Pennyworth may be long and a little too on the nose, but it does help tell people who aren't dedicated DC fans who the show is about.

"The beauty of the DC canon is that pretty much everyone has has a smattering of knowledge about it," said Heller. "But there are several steps from name recognition to eyeballs on the screen. I think HBO Max was right. Visibility and clarity is everything ... though I wish it could have been 'the butler that changed America' because I always like that in book titles."

Despite the changes, Pennyworth will still be the same series it was before the move, so the third season should deliver more of what fans have already come to love and expect.

Pennyworth: The Origins of Batman's Butler returns for its third season on October 6th.