The series — which is not a Gotham prequel despite hailing from showrunner Bruno Heller — revolves around Alfred Pennyworth, a former British SAS soldier in his 20s, who forms a security company and goes to work with a young billionaire Thomas Wayne, who is not yet Bruce's father, in 1960s London.

Jack Bannon (The Imitation Game, Ripper Street) has been tapped to take on the title role in the premium cable network's 10-episode scripted drama about Bruce Wayne's legendary butler Alfred Pennyworth.

Pennyworth's Alfred is described as a boyishly handsome, cheerful, charming, clever young man from London. Honest, open-faced and witty, he's the kind of person people would never take for a SAS killer. Alfred doesn't know how to reconcile the kind-hearted boy he used to be with the cold, calculated killer he was forced to become. He's a man on the make, who doesn't know what to make of himself yet.

Pennyworth is based on DC characters created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. Heller will pen the script and executive produce. The drama marks a reunion for Heller with Gotham's Danny Cannon, who will exec produce and direct the pilot as he did with the Fox Batman origin story. Production on the series begins Oct. 22 at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in the U.K.

Repped by Paradigm, Untitled and the U.K.'s United Agents, Pennyworth will mark Bannon's first stateside role after a number of British series including Clique and Endeavour. He is best known for his role as Christopher Morcom in the 2014 feature The Imitation Game, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley.