Preacher

From The TV IV

Preacher

Premiere	Unproduced
Finale
Airs
Creator	Garth Ennis (comics)
Network	HBO
Style	1 hour drama
Company	—
Episodes	1
Seasons	0
Origin	USA

Preacher is a drama series adapted from the popular comic book of the same name by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon that was a planned production for HBO. The series was to tell the story of Jesse Custer, a wayward preacher who has been possessed by Genesis, the unnatural spawn of a demon and an angel. Because of this, Custer is empowered with the "Word of God," an ability that compels people to do whatever he says. Along with Tulip, his ex-girlfriend, and Cassidy, an Irish vampire, Custer attempts to track down God and hold him accountable for his negligence.

Preacher has been in the works for an adaptation since the comic series was completed in 2000. A film version produced by View Askew had gotten as far as casting, with James Marsden in the lead role, but was eventually scrapped. In 2006, the property was rumored to have been picked up by HBO, but it wasn't officially announced that a series was in production until November.

It was originally announced that the pilot for the series would be directed by Howard Deutch and written by Mark Steven Johnson. However, as late as September 2007, rumors circled that Sin City director Robert Rodriguez may be tapped for the job instead of Deutch. Deutch was a controversial pick among fans of the comic due to his major credits being almost entirely comprised of light comedies. Plans were put in place to attach guest directors to the series for future episodes like Rodriguez and Kevin Smith.

Johnson explained in an interview that the series is plotted out so that each hour tells the story from a single issue. With 66 issues, plus several specials and miniseries, Johnson expected the series to span 6 years. However, Johnson also expressed interest in episodes with all new content from Ennis, which would have pushed the episode count higher.

On August 26, 2008, the series was declared dead by Johnson, who said that the new head of the network thought it "was just too dark and too violent and too controversial." Johnson passed on the opportunity to redevelop the series and will go forward in attempting to adapt the comic series as a movie again. The pilot episode was written, but it is unknown if the script was produced.