One of the most anticipated books-to-TV show adaptations coming this year is Neil Gaiman's "American Gods." The epic fantasy novel about a war between the Gods of mythology against the Gods of the technical age will come to Starz for an eight-episode first season. According to the network, the "American Gods" premiere date has been set for April 30 at 9 p.m. EST.
Neil Gaiman's 'American Gods'
"American Gods" follows a man named Shadow, who opens the novel in prison. Just when he is about to head home, his girlfriend dies in a car accident and he realizes he has nothing to return to.
That is when he meets an old man named Mr. Wednesday, who also happens to be the elder Norse God Odin.
Mr. Wednesday hires him to be his muscle as he sets out to gather as many old gods as he can to prepare for a war. The war happens to be against the gods of the new age -- technology, media, and more. It also doesn't help that Shadow's dead girlfriend returns from the dead.
'American Gods' on Starz
For Neil Gaiman fans who wanted to make sure to get a loyal adaptation that the author of the book could remain proud of, Starz is the best place for the show to end up. This is the same television network that premiered 'Ash vs. Evil Dead," a show that completely respected the movies on which it is based.
Neil Gaiman has remained on as a producer and seems really excited about what is coming. The cast is also top notch. Ian McShane ("Deadwood") is Mr. Wednesday and there are also great casting choices in names like Crispin Glover ("Back to the Future"), Cloris Leachman ("Malcolm in the Middle"), Peter Stormare ("Fargo"), and Gillian Anderson ("X-Files").
Oher Neil Gaiman projects
While he is no Stephen King when it comes to movies, the track record of Neil Gaiman movies is still very impressive. The great stop-motion animation flick "Coraline" was based on one of his young adult novels. "Stardust" was a very underrated fantasy novel brought to life.
On TV, his amazing comic book series "Sandman" received a spin-off in "Lucifer," which became a FOX television series.
Even better is that the success of the "American Gods" premiere will likely lead to a television adaptation of "Good Omens," arguably his best novel.
Are you excited about the "American Gods" premiere date news? Will you be there to check it out when it kicks off on April 30?
