US cable network AMC has officially ordered a pilot for the Preacher TV adaptation! “Wait,” we hear you ask, “didn’t it already order that?” And you might well think that, based on the story from more than a year ago. Now, though, it appears to be fully ready to shoot, with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg producing and directing the pilot.
Writing chores for the initial episode have been handed to Breaking Bad veteran Sam Catlin who will, should the series get a full order, serve as the man running the show.
And they have quite the job ahead of them, since Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s graphic novel series is not for the faint of heart, gut or moral fibre. Preacher is the sprawling tale of Jesse Custer, a handsome young Texas reverend with a dark past and a deep love of John Wayne films who becomes bonded with a creature known as Genesis, the offspring of an angel and demon. The blend at times makes him as powerful as God Himself, but also gives him real problems.
As Jesse, his ex-girlfriend (and assassin) Tulip and their new friend Cassidy (a vampire) try to figure out why he has this power and why God appears to have forsaken his kingdom, they cross paths with saints, serial killers and many, many inbred weirdoes. “Preacher has been our favourite comic since it first came out,” Rogen and Goldberg say in a statement. “Garth Ennis is one of our idols and it's an incredible honour to be working on this. We promise we won't make too many dick jokes and ruin it.” The pilot is scheduled to shoot next summer and if commissioned, the show will be on screens in 2016.