Bruno Heller

In 2018/19 Heller created Pennyworth. This series will focus on the early years of Alfred Pennyworth, friend and butler to Bruce Wayne/Batman. The series is not a Gotham spinoff but a brand new story looking at Alfred's origins as a former British soldier who sets up a private security firm and goes to work with Thomas Wayne — Batman’s father — in 1960s England. Pennyworth is set in a completely different universe despite hailing from Heller and producers Warner Horizon. 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.

In 2013, Fox won a bidding war for a pilot set in Gotham written by Heller.

He left England for New York, where he would meet his wife, Miranda Cowley, granddaughter of the American poet and critic Malcolm Cowley. After five years in the city, Heller moved to Los Angeles, where he worked on various television dramas including two projects for the USA Network: Touching Evil and The Huntress. But his breakthrough came with Rome, which he co-created. After the cancellation of that series for its high costs, Heller created The Mentalist. In September 2012, Heller sold a legal drama named The Advocates to CBS, which was written and executive produced by him, but the project finally did not go to series. In 2014 Heller created a TV series based on the Batman character James Gordon called Gotham for Fox Broadcasting Company.

In 2008, Heller created the CBS television series, The Mentalist, with his production company Primrose Hill Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. On 7 January 2009, the show won the award for "Favorite New TV Drama" at the 35th People's Choice Awards and since then, the star, Simon Baker has received several nominations for his portrayal of the lead character, Patrick Jane. Heller served as showrunner from season 1 to 6. He departed the show before season 7 to focus on Gotham.

In 1993, Heller married Miranda Phillips Cowley, a senior vice president at HBO; the couple have two children.

Heller was a union soundman working in England in the 1980s when film sets were staunchly hierarchical. While working as a soundman on a series of films about England's infamous Miners' Strike, Heller met well-regarded Portuguese director Eduardo Guedes. The two collaborated on what would become Heller's first writing credit, the 1994 film Pax starring Amanda Plummer. ("Pax" is the Latin word for "Peace" used in the Portuguese epitaphs on gravestones.)

Bruno Heller (born January 13, 1960) is an English screenwriter, producer and director. He is known for creating the HBO television series Rome and CBS television series The Mentalist. He has produced the TV series Gotham, based on the Batman franchise, for FOX and Pennyworth for Epix.