When it hit theaters earlier this year, Warner Bros' Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice did a lot of world-building for the DC Extended Universe. Several new characters were introduced during the film, though some were only featured briefly. However, certain main and supporting characters will obviously return in later films, including the upcoming team-up Justice League Part One.

While characters like Batman and The Flash are definitely going to be in the superhero team-up, it's now been confirmed that Jeremy Irons' Alfred Pennyworth will appear as well. How big of a role he'll play in the crossover is unknown, however.

According to Roger Friedman of Showbiz 411, Irons himself broke the news that he would appear in Justice League after Friedman congratulated him on his performance in The Man Who Knew Infinity. After the appearance in Justice League, he will then reprise the role again for the Ben Affleck-directed Batman solo film that will be released at some point after Justice League hits theaters. Much like Eka Darville reprising his Jessica Jones role in The Defenders, Irons' role in Justice League will likely be minor even if it is important.

Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne and Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth

This adds even more support to Batman's side in Justice League, as J.K. Simmons will play Commissioner Gordon in the film as well. It's unknown whether Wonder Woman and Aquaman, who both have films due out before Justice League, will have supporting characters appear in the team-up as well. It's possible that Batman's supporting cast will get more attention both because of how central Batman is to DC's lineup and because their appearances now will pave the way for the Batman film.

The news that Irons is returning isn't necessarily surprising, especially given how much Alfred and Bruce Wayne seemed to work as partners in Batman V Superman. While it's possible that Batman could have appeared in the film alone, it makes much more sense for him to have his primary support with him. It would seem odd for Batman to go the whole film without making any sort of contact with Alfred, even if that contact comes in the form of a brief cameo.

Not much is known about Justice League so far, though Warner Bros is supposedly keeping a closer eye on the production to help ensure its quality. It's unlikely that Alfred or any of the supporting characters will have a pivotal role, of course, since the focus of the film is about the DC superheroes. Even so, sometimes small roles do have a big impact.

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Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice is now playing in U.S. theaters. Suicide Squad will arrive on August 5, 2016, followed by Wonder Woman on June 2, 2017; Justice League Part One on November 17, 2017; The Flash on March 16, 2018; Aquaman on July 27, 2018; an untitled DC Film on October 5, 2018; Shazam on April 5, 2019; Justice League Part Two on June 14, 2019; an untitled DC film on November 1, 2019; Cyborg on April 3, 2020; and Green Lantern Corps on June 19, 2020. A date for the Batman film has not yet been announced.

Source: Showbiz 411