In The Batman, Alfred Pennyworth's (Andy Serkis) warning to Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson) continues the failed attempts of The Dark Knight Rises' Alfred (Michael Caine) to convince Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) to give up being Batman. Director Matt Reeves' The Batman is set in year two of Wayne trying to rescue Gotham by becoming a violent nocturnal vigilante. Pattinson's younger Batman echoes Bale's Dark Knight, who was also inventing how to be Batman as he went along in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.
In The Dark Knight Trilogy, Alfred tried to be the voice of reason ever since Bruce Wayne returned from seven years abroad and revealed his insane plan to wage war on Gotham's criminals by dressing up as a bat. Alfred still supported Bruce and did his best to keep Mr. Wayne from getting himself killed as Batman. But what Pennyworth really wanted for his employer was for Bruce to stop the madness of being Batman and pursue a safer course to help Gotham. In The Dark Knight Rises, Alfred's concern for Bruce shifted to wanting Wayne to go back into the world after eight years of being a recluse. But Bruce deciding to become Batman once more and face Bane (Tom Hardy) wasn't what Alfred had in mind. Before Alfred quit in a last-ditch effort to make Bruce see reason, he told Wayne, "No more. I've sewn you up, I've set your bones, but I won't bury you... You see only one end to your journey."
The Batman's trailer shows Andy Serkis' Alfred Pennyworth sharing the worry and frustration of his predecessor, Michael Caine. Serkis' Alfred warns Robert Pattinson's Bruce Wayne, "If this continues, it won't be long before you've nothing left." Alfred's ominous words, which will no doubt fall on dead bat ears, alludes to the fact that Bruce Wayne in The Batman is on a brutal collision course with The Riddler (Paul Dano). Furthermore, as Matt Reeves discussed with Robert Pattinson and Zoë Kravitz, who plays Selina Kyla/Catwoman, during DC FanDome, their take on Batman is someone frustrated that the methods he's employing to save Gotham from crime aren't working, and it's taking a heavy toll on Bruce Wayne physically and psychologically.
The Batman's world appears to be even more harrowing and violent than the incarnations seen in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy and Zack Snyder's Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, so it's understandable why Alfred is afraid for Bruce and the tragic end he appears to be heading toward. The Batman's Dark Knight takes on a Joker-like clown-masked gang and Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin (Colin Farrell) as well as the Riddler. Further, Robert Pattinson's Batman is repeatedly shot by machine gunfire as he faces multiple enemies in cramped quarters. The Batman's suit may be armored and can deflect the bullets but it's still apparent when Bruce Wayne emerges in the light of day that the nightly punishment is taking a severe toll on him.
Evidently, Robert Pattinson is playing a more tortured version of Bruce Wayne in The Batman and this could make the job of Andy Serkis' Alfred even more difficult than Michael Caine's Pennyworth. The Batman may prove to be the most gritty and frightening incarnation of Gotham seen in a movie yet, but one crucial thing every Batman has in common is ignoring the concern of their faithful butler and father figure. Christian Bale's Dark Knight never heeded Michael Caine's Alfred's warnings and that pattern could tragically continue for Andy Serkis' Alfred and Robert Pattinson's Bruce Wayne in The Batman. Because, as Alfred justifiably fears, Bruce really won't stop being Batman until he has nothing left.
