TULIP IN BLOOM

Is the romance between Tulip and Jesse the romance to end all romances?

Like True Romance? I think it’s better than that because when have you ever seen a romance that reflects the hatred you can have for someone you love? The pure ice- blue hate that you can have for someone you desire and want and love at the same time. It’s never as simplistic as it’s made out to be, is it? I mean, one of my favourite films is the original Bonnie And Clyde. That kind of taboo – you could literally kill someone. What did you respond to in the Preacher comic?

The great thing about Garth [ Ennis] is he will never tie up anything in a nice ribbon and bow. He’ll go, “That’s it. I’ll give you this now. This is not an answer. It’s a question, and it’s a really fascinating question. I don’t have the answer, and I’m not expecting you to have the answer. But think about it.” To me, that’s the most interesting thing that comics do. They don’t really tie things up, do they? The good ones. They fucking crack open the really big questions… What is good? What is evil? Who is good? Who is evil? It’s not straight down the line. Superheroes are always orphans aren’t they? They’re always broken children. That’s lovely. There’s something really lovely about [ the idea that] none of us are irredeemable. How often is Garth there on set?

He’s never there. But he sees everything, and he occasionally will give you his blessing. Which is like being blessed by the Pope [ laughs]. He’s a quiet, gentle man with a deep, deep mind. If you could be any other comic character beside Tulip, who would it be and why?

I would definitely be Catwoman. Because Eartha Kitt, she fucking killed it. It was a special thing when she came on. I just loved that.