As a huge fan of Vertigo Comics’ Hellblazer, about hard-bitten wise-cracking paranormal detective John Constantine, I’m warily excited about the upcoming TV series on NBC. Wary because of the totally off-base movie of the same name. Excited because, well, it looks like they got a bunch of things about the character and universe in which he lives “right.”
“I think as with the source material,” says series lead Matt Ryan in an interview with IGN, “there’s so much to draw from in terms of the character and the balance of humor and wit and dark and gritty. It’s great, because John has this kind of real sarcastic, ironic British wit. It’s funny, but at the same time it’s serious and dark and gritty. It’s got it all, I think.”
At first glance, the trailer (below) looks like the show creators understand more of the character than the 2005 movie starring Keanu Reeves ever did, including emo angels, a world-weary John Constantine and his famous trench coat.
https://youtu.be/uPE2oBnzROY
As this is for broadcast television in the U.S., it’s clear we won’t be seeing any cigarettes dangling from the scruffy main character’s mouth, but hey, I’d much rather have Harold Perrineau (Oz, Lost) as a cryptic angel than the nicotine.
NBC’s Constantine stars Matt Ryan (The Tudors, Criminal Minds) and Lucy Griffiths (True Blood) as John Constantine and Liv, respectively. Constantine is an old friend of Liv’s and must protect her as she transitions from dull normal human to a paranormally sensitive one, just like Constantine.
Both actors are enjoying the research on their new characters. Getting to read comic books is a dream come true, for Ryan.
“Yeah, and we’re trying to stay as close to the source material as possible and really do the comics justice,” he said.
Griffiths agreed, saying, “It’s pretty faithful!”
The TV show will air in October of this year on NBC, as a Warner Bros. television production, with David S Goyer (Batman Begins, Man of Steel) as an executive producer.
I, for one, cannot wait to see how this all turns out.
Source: IGN
Via: Comic Book Movie
Image: Variety
