Devin Faraci reports that AMC has ordered a pilot based on the hit Vertigo graphic novel series Preacher.
Sources tell me that the network has ordered a pilot based on the classic Vertigo comic by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon. In the comic Jesse Custer is a small town preacher who is torn by booze and sin and who finds himself the vessel for a strange entity - the child of a mating between an angel and a demon. Filled with immense power, including The Word of God, which makes anyone do whatever he says, Jesse goes hunting for the Lord Almighty, who has abandoned creation. He aims to make him pay for leaving his children behind. Joining Jesse on his journey is his ex-girlfriend Tulip, who is now a hit woman, and a hundred year old Irish vampire named Cassidy. Along the way they battle secret religious commandoes, the retarded descendent of Christ, a guy who fucks meat and even each other.
Potentially great news for fans of the comic as both Rogen and Goldberg are hardcore Preacher geeks.
Wow, this is great news for a hardcore Preacher fan like me, but still, I find it very hard to imagine how this can be done. Like the article says:
"The HBO incarnation, first announced in November 2006, had initial plans for a by-the-book take on all 75 issues (including one-shots). After crafting the bible for a potential series, HBO -- under new executives -- passed on the project. The network, Johnson said, thought Preacher was "too dark and too violent and too controversial."
and that's putting it mildly. Preacher is a powerful piece of work, boldly daring, dark, with heavy sexual content and extreme violence. And yeah, very controversial (I'd even add blasphemous) from beginning to end. So, a faithful adaptation (even a near-faithful) is something I find very hard to happen. For those who are not familiar with it, check these pages:
Anyway, Garth Ennis says
"I'm particularly impressed that Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and Sam Catlin understand Preacher fully -- meaning they get it for what it is, not some vague approximation. All in all, it looks like Preacher can now be brought to TV in a way that I'd previously not have thought possible, and I very much appreciate that Steve and I have been included in the conversation in the way that we have."
If Ennis says so... then I guess this could turn out to be something very cool.
