NBC’s Hannibal may be over, but the Hannibal team lives on at Starz!
Deadline is reporting that director David Slade has joined American Gods as an executive producer, which will reunite him with Bryan Fuller, the former showrunner of Hannibal. As part of the deal, Slade will direct the pilot episode of American Gods and several additional episodes as well.
Slade’s previous TV work includes Awake, Life, Crossbones, and Powers, the Playstation original series based on the comic book. Slade also directed The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.
American Gods is based upon the 2001 novel of the same name by author Neil Gaiman. HBO was originally developing American Gods for television, but Starz snapped it up earlier this year when the rights became available.
Related: Bryan Fuller on the ‘Hannibal’ Finale and ‘American Gods’
The story of American Gods follows Shadow Moon, an ex-convict mourning the loss of his wife who is hired to be the bodyguard of Mr. Wednesday, a con man. However, Mr. Wednesday is secretly one of the old gods who is traveling across the country to recruit his fellow deities for a war against the new breed of American Gods, who personify the things that modern people worship like fame, technology, and wealth.
Technically, the series order from Starz is contingent upon the network’s approval of Shadow’s casting. But given the talent involved, American Gods is expected to remain on track for a 2017 premiere on Starz.
American Gods fans, are you excited to hear about David Slade’s involvement? Let us know in the comment section below!
