Dominic Cooper Rumoured For Lead In TV’s Preacher

Actor Dominic Cooper is the front-runner for the lead role in the long awaited TV adaptation of DC Vertigo comic book ‘Preacher,’ it has been claimed.

The Tracking Board report that the 36-year old Brit - already known to comic book movie fans for his recurring Marvel Cinematic Universe role as the young Howard Stark - is the “top pick” to appear in the AMC series as Jesse Custer, a disillusioned Texan reverend who unwittingly merges with an ethereal entity named Genesis, and sets off with his hit-woman ex-girlfriend Tulip and alcoholic vampire best friend Cassidy on a mission to track down God, after learning He has gone AWOL from His post in heaven.

However, it is stressed that “no official offers” are thought to have been made to Cooper yet, and there is no mention of who might be in contention for any of the supporting roles - although another British actor Andy Nyman has revealed on Twitter that he has read for the part of Fiore, a disgraced angel.

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As might be readily apparent from the synopsis, ‘Preacher’ - from writer/artist team Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon - has been more than a little controversial since its publication in the mid-1990s, and fears over the provocative subject matter have played a considerable role in scuppering the many earlier attempts to bring the story to the screen.

However, given that the writers, directors and executive producers of this pilot episode are none other than Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg - most recently responsible for a certain film called ‘The Interview’ - it’s fair to say all concerned are used to a little controversy.

This may also be why to date the series - which also has former ‘Breaking Bad’ writer Sam Catlin on board - has only had its pilot episode ordered to date, meaning there is not yet any guarantee it will be picked up for a full series.

Even so, some very positive reviews of Rogen, Goldberg and Catlin’s pilot episode screenplay have emerged, with Bleeding Cool declaring it “astonishingly good, more so for being so different from the comic,” noting that the script successfully brings the 90s comic up to date with more contemporary elements and a tweaked structure.

It has also come to light that the character of Tulip has been changed from the white blonde woman of the comics to an African-American.

Should the reports linking Dominic Cooper to ‘Preacher’ prove accurate, and should the actor himself be interested, it’s not hard to see him in the role. He certainly looks the part, so as long as he can do a convincing Texan drawl - not hard to imagine given the diversity of accents he’s used in his earlier work - there should be no problem.

Cooper’s recent TV work includes Sky mini-series ‘Fleming,’ in which he portrayed the James Bond creator, and Marvel’s ‘Agent Carter’ in which he reprised his ‘Captain America: the First Avenger’ role of Howard Stark. Recent big screen roles include ‘Need For Speed’ and ‘Dracula Untold.’

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Picture Credit: DC, WENN