HOLY MAN
What were your thoughts when you first saw the script for Preacher’s pilot?
I was terrified of it, actually. I mean, I was so desperate to have something to do with this project. Then I saw the comics and absolutely loved them. And then I met Seth, Evan and Sam, and they were the strangest people I’ve ever met. They had so many ideas. For some reason in that meeting they saw something in me.
How much of your Jesse did you want to pull from the comic and how much did you create from your own imagination?
I kept going back to the comics… It’s the hardest part I’ve ever had to do. I often think, “Am I just being really boring?” I mean Cassidy is putting a lampshade on his head, he’s covered in blankets, and doing something. He’s hilarious in every scene. I just needed to truly believe this man’s origin, his background, where he comes from. There’s a lot of information to go on in the comics, and it’s his complexities that I find so intriguing to cover. Every day there’s more to discover about him.
How much of the comic have you read?
I’ve read all of them. I’ve got the big chunky books.
The spirit of your Jesse is similar to that of the comic’s, even if the man is different.
He changes quite a lot. He’s very lost in that first episode. There’s a heavy side to him. But it lightens up very quickly, as you know from the comics. When Genesis comes he thinks he’s got this wonderful power for good. There’s a totally different side to him. Then there’s an episode where he becomes very cocky and full of himself and his ability to do these things. But it’s still for the good of the people that he wants to help.