Preacher, based on the DC/Vertigo Comic, has long been in development hell (pun intended), having been tossed around as a film adaptation and TV series between filmmakers, studios, and networks for a long while now. Mark Stephen Johnson (DAREDEVIL), Sam Mendes (SKYFALL), and HBO are just a few of the folks who have almost taken the plunge, but eventually pulled out for one reason or another. Now, according to a source for Badass Digest, it appears that AMC, who has become renowned for cutting edge television with shows like Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead, is apparently taking the reins and ordering up a pilot.
After the story ran from Badass Digest, another strange source popped up to verify it in the form of Seth Rogen. Rogen took to Twitter and had this to say:
Looks like about seven of years of hard work are about to pay off. I may get to bring one of my favourite stories ever to life.
— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) November 16, 2013
Arseface. John Wayne, The Saint of Killers.
— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) November 17, 2013
It's hard to say what involvement Rogen may have on the adaptation, be it acting, producing, writing, or some combination, but it's doubtful he would take to Twitter and tease such a thing if he knew the stakes in doing so. With the massive success of THIS IS THE END this past summer, which plays in the religious playground a bit, while mixing in raunchy humor and bloody violence, Rogen may have inadvertently proven to be someone that could help bring the property to life. Fans of Preacher (myself included) are pretty rabid, especially armed with the knowledge of how absolutely difficult it will be to adapt the violent, blasphemous, and downright hardcore comic to any medium.
In addition to all that, Bleeding Cool also has a report of AMC COO Ed Carroll walking into a comic shop in New York, buying a volume of Preacher, and talking at length with the owner about the book before dropping the news that he "works" for AMC and after being told that “If you do it right, though, it could be VERY successful,” says: “I hope so, we paid enough for it." There's a full blow-by-blow here, with all of it adding up to a very promising reality that Preacher may finally be filmed.
Does that mean it will make it to series? Well, that's one hurdle, for sure, but beyond that it will depend on the creators and cast involved and whether or not they can truly bring the sordid tale of Jesse Custer to life once and for all. AMC could potentially be the best place for the adaptation, but at this point I'll believe it when I see it.
More as this develops…still.