Pennyworth: Jack Bannon says that Alfred “sees a lot of himself in Captain Gully Troy”

In an interview with Culturess, Pennyworth’s Jack Bannon lauded the “brilliant” casting of James Purefoy and admitted he “missed” Emma Corrin on the show.

EPIX’s Pennyworth — the exciting, reimagined Batman prequel, set in a stylistically gorgeous, war-torn 1960s London — is back. Season one introduced us to the Army SAS officer-turned-security-firm-expert, Alfred Pennyworth, long before he became the titular butler to Bruce Wayne. Jack Bannon has given us a distinct take on the Batman side character, one that is highly skilled, brilliant, and always dapper. If he and Bruce Wayne went to school together, one would imagine them being best friends.

Pennyworth’s season two jumps ahead by a year after the explosive events last season between the civil war factions Raven Society and the No Name League. A lot’s changed, with Alfred Pennyworth now trying to run a black-market club under the watchful eye of a more powerful Raven Society, in the sort of neutral territory of London, and trying to get enough money to make it to America.

Watching the screeners of Pennyworth‘s second season, Bannon’s smooth-operating, exquisitely dressed Pennyworth is reminiscent of Casablanca’s Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart).

Culturess participated in a Zoom interview with Jack Bannon and asked him about changes this season, working with James Purefoy, and if Alfred will have any luck in the love department.

Culturess: What can you tease about the surprises coming this season? What are you excited for fans to see in season two?

Jack Bannon: I think I’m most excited for people to see our version of London at war. I think one of the strongest things about season one was the world in which Bruno created. And then our version of London, and the war… I mean, you know, war’s awful, obviously, but it’s a great dramatic tool, and I think that’s exciting. There’s lots of action.

There’s some fantastic new characters coming in. Captain Troy, who’s played by James Purefoy is amazing. James was brilliant. And I learned so much from him. He plays this kind of brute of a man who’s a kind of heavy-drinking, you know, violent, but sort of womanizer, but devilishly charming as only James can be. And Jessica de Gouw [who] plays his wife is also fantastic. So, yeah, there’s lots of new stuff going on.

We started shooting in January, and we’ve only really just finished because of coronavirus. So, yeah, a year in the making, it feels bigger. It feels, obviously, contextualized with what’s going on in the world. It’s just television, and it sort of falls into insignificance, but it feels big, and it feels like a great piece of sort of escapism for everybody, so I’m very excited.

Culturess: You mentioned James Purefoy. His character — Captain Troy — seems to have a real hold on you. Can you tell me a little more about your complex relationship with him?

Bannon: Yes. So, Captain Gulliver Troy — or Gully Troy, as he’s known — he was a captain of Alfred’s in the army, so he was his senior… There’s a father-son element to it, so he kind of filled a void of Alfred’s father, who obviously was just killed.

But there’s also a kind of mentorship thing where Alfred sees a lot of himself in Captain Troy, but he’s not quite sure that he wants to turn into him, you know, because he has some skewed morals going on. But they kind of buddy up.

And, yeah, James was fantastic. I mean, from day one, I sort of I did see quite a lot of myself in him as Jack, and also as Alfred. So, it’s a very clever piece of casting, and yeah, we had a lot of fun.

Culturess: Talking about relationships, your character has had a lot of luck with women. With him still dealing with Esme’s death, do you think he’ll go back to the Queen, or will he find someone else?

Bannon: Well, this season, mainly it’s about Sandra Onslow, the barmaid from the Severed Arms, who is now the singer in Alfred’s nightclub. She’s becoming a sort of pop star, if you’d like. So, I would describe her as an on-off girlfriend for him. He is never quite sure, but I think this season, he does kind of love her, and he makes a bit more of a pledge to her, because he knows that Esme was Esme — she was different — and he’s never going to fill that void.

He’s able, once he’s made peace with that and not compare Sandra to her, he’s able to give her a little bit more. But then there are others, you know, in classic Pennyworth fashion. There’s more to it. Just as he thinks he’s going to be settling down — perhaps for a quiet life — things are not going to let that  happen.

Culturess: Have you seen Emma Corrin (Esme in Pennyworth season one) on The Crown as Diana?

Bannon: I have, yes.

Culturess: Yeah, she’s phenomenal. I miss her on this show.

Bannon: Yeah, me too.

Pennyworth season two premiered on EPIX December 13. Episodes air weekly on Sundays.

What was the biggest surprise to you in the season two premiere of Pennyworth? Do you think Captain Troy will only cause problems down the road? Sound off in the comments below!