One of the best comic book TV adaptations is now on Netflix. Here’s why you should stream it
Netflix recently added several shows from AMC and AMC+, including Dark Winds, an acclaimed drama that has marched up the list of the most popular shows on Netflix. By comparison, Preacher has yet to make a similar impact on Netflix despite the fact that it was co-created by Garth Ennis, the co-creator of Prime Video’s hit series The Boys.
Ennis and the late comic book artist Steve Dillon created Preacher as an adult comic book series for DC Comics’ Vertigo line from 1995 to 2000. Several attempts to turn Preacher into a movie failed, and even HBO gave up on it before Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg — who went on to adapt The Boys — joined the project and developed it with Sam Catlin for AMC.
Preacher never achieved a Walking Dead-sized audience at AMC, but the show did get a chance to tell a complete four-season story that ran for 43 episodes. That alone makes it very bingeable. But for the uninitiated, we’re sharing the four reasons why you should watch Preacher on Netflix in August.
The story is incredibly wild
Dominic Cooper’s Jesse Custer is the title character of Preacher, but he’s no pious man of God. While facing a crisis of faith, Jesse is possessed by Genesis, an offspring of a demon and an angel, that gives him the power to verbally command almost anyone in existence. Armed with the literal word of God, Jesse, his former girlfriend-turned-assassin, Tulip O’Hare (Ruth Negga), and their new friend, a centuries-old Irish vampire named Cassidy (Joseph Gilgun), set out on the road trip of a lifetime to find God and force Him to go back to Heaven.
The first season does take its time to get to this point, as Jesse learns about his newfound power and tries to use it to bring people closer to God. Jesse’s faith turns to anger when he learns that the Almighty has abandoned creation. Since God is still all-knowing, he places a number of obstacles in their way, including The Grail, a secretive cult/religious order that is planning to overthrow the world’s governments by using the last descendent of Jesus Christ as their puppet ruler.
This is all largely played for black comedy rather than a straightforward drama. We haven’t even gotten into the escape attempts from hell, and the other tangents that Preacher goes off on. Suffice to say, this is no ordinary show.
Dominic Cooper gives a commanding performance
Marvel fans may recognize Dominic Cooper as Howard Stark from Captain America: The First Avenger as well as the follow-up Agent Carter TV series. Cooper was primarily a film actor when he signed on for Preacher, and it’s not hard to see why playing Jesse appealed to him. While the events of Preacher sometimes descend into farce, Jesse is always treated seriously. Jesse comes from an abusive environment, and he’s haunted by the murder of his father. He’s well-aware of his personal shortcomings, but Jesse really does try to be a good preacher before his faith is shaken by God’s abandonment.
Tulip and Cassidy share the spotlight on this series, but it’s still Jesse’s show and his story that carries Preacher from beginning to end. Cooper’s performance is compelling, and he can pull off the show’s comedic and dramatic moments equally well.
The supporting characters are hilarious and tragic
There’s no shortage of characters on this series, which sometimes has too many players on the field. But one of Preacher‘s strengths is its supporting cast. Gilgun’s Cassidy is particularly great as one the show’s most comedic and tragic characters. Cassidy tries to be a good friend to Jesse, but he winds up falling for Tulip and letting down the people he loves the most. He almost can’t help himself.
Eugene Root (Ian Colletti) is largely kept separate from most of the main cast during the series, but he represents one of Jesse’s original sins. After a botched suicide attempt, Eugene is horribly scarred and shunned by the locals in his town. Jesse tries to help Eugene find acceptance before he accidentally sends the kid to hell in a moment of anger. Eugene is such a good-natured guy that hell barely knows what to do with him, and that goes into some interesting directions that are both comedic and tragic.
The show’s first season also teases the introduction of the Cowboy (Graham McTavish), and even gives him the name of Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven character, William Munny. Unlike most of the other characters, the Cowboy’s backstory is played as a straight tragedy before the show unveils his transformation into the Saint of Killers, Jesse’s most formidable enemy throughout the series. McTavish is fantastic in the role, and he could have easily held down his own show.
Finally, we have Herr Starr (Pip Torrens), the proverbial villain that you’ll love to hate. Starr is one of the leaders of The Grail and a truly despicable man… and the show delights in physically and psychologically traumatizing him. Starr is in no way sympathetic, unlike the Saint of Killers, and that’s why it’s always satisfying to watch him suffer. Jesse is targeted by Starr because the latter wants to use his power for his schemes, but Jesse never stays under Starr’s thumb for long.
The TV show cuts out the comic’s worst aspects
As wild as Preacher is, the TV series has drastically cut down on the worst aspects of the comic. Ennis, the writer of the comic book series that inspired the show, has a tendency to throw in the most depraved things he can think of into his stories. He did the same thing in The Boys comic as well, and that’s why that series and Preacher have been made more palatable by cutting those parts out of their respective adaptations.
Preacher pushes the limits of its TV-MA rating even without the things that were left out from the comic. But without those omissions, Preacher wouldn’t have been suitable for a wider audience than the comic book could ever have. Sam Catlin, Seth Rogen, and Evan Goldberg ultimately made the right call by going in that direction.
Watch Preacher on Netflix.
