23 / 107
023
FEATURE
DVD&BD
kind of happen to him and he gets carried away
in the current.”
Gaiman has a devoted following, but Whittle
admits to having been unfamiliar with the
author’s work prior to becoming involved
in
American Gods
. “It wasn’t until I started
auditioning that I realised how huge the name
Neil Gaiman was. This is a great opportunity
for me to learn about the rest of his stuff –
Sandman
and all these things that fans are
passionate and crazy about.”
The author was involved in the adaptation
process from the very beginning, reveals
Whittle, who hung out with Gaiman at San
Diego Comic-Con last year. “He’s got an
incredible mind and it was a real honour to
spend time together. He has such a fantastic
sense of humour and he was very inspiring
to be around. He’s very much a piece of this
puzzle.”
The actor also credits Fuller and Green with
assembling one of the best ensemble casts
he’s ever seen for a TV series, including Ian
McShane, Crispin Glover, Peter Stomare, Gillian
Anderson and Australia’s own Emily Browning.
“The show follows Shadow and Mr.
Wednesday’s journey, so I have plenty of
scenes with Ian McShane, who I grew up
watching in
Lovejoy
. Others know him from
Deadwood
, where he was an evil piece of
work. He’s been in the industry for fifty
years and has an incredible body of work,
so he brings great experience and talent
to the table. I feel very blessed that I get to
work and learn from one of my idols.”
Whittle promises the series will be a very
faithful adaptation of Gaiman’s book that fans
are going to love. “There are enough tweaks,
twists and turns to keep things fresh for them
as well, he adds. “It’s dark but it’s funny. It’s a
love story, a show about journeys, about finding
ourselves and raising awareness of various
topics and controversial issues, from gun
control to religion and faith …”
But will it feature the infamous sequence
from the novel involving a goddess named
Bilquis? “That scene is there,” he confirms,
“and it’s a challenge to the viewer. If you can
get past that scene, then you’re going to love
this show. If it’s too much for you, you need to
back away. Nothing’s too dark for this show.”
Shadow and Wednesday’s journey is set to
continue, with
American Gods
renewed for a
second season – a mere two weeks after its
premiere – and Whittle is confident it has the
legs to run for three or four.
“The book works as the perfect blueprint
for a TV show. Neil Gaiman has many avenues
he goes down but doesn’t necessarily follow
them all the way through, and Bryan Fuller has
said
American Gods
is basically ‘Avengers with
gods.’ There’s so much potential.”
•
American
Gods
is out
on July 19.
The book works as the perfect
blueprint for a TV show
STARDUST
The 2007 adaptation of Gaiman's fantasy
favourite isn't short on stars, with Claire
Danes, Peter O'Toole, Robert De Niro and Ricky
Gervais bringing his beloved characters to life.
CORALINE
Director Henry Selick and the stop-motion
magic of Laika bring charm and chills to this
animated version of the author's dark spin on
Lewis Carroll's
Alice in Wonderland
.
BEOWULF
Gaiman's screenwriting skills (and Roger
Avery's) transformed the epic Old English
poem into a dynamic, MoCap fantasy-
adventure for director Robert Zemeckis.
DOCTOR WHO
The Doctor's Wife
, Gaiman's heartwarming ode
to the Time Lord's relationship with his TARDIS,
is one the best eps of the Matt Smith era. He
also penned the Cyber-story
Nightmare in Silver
.
GET INTO
GAIMAN