The old gods—brought to America by immigrants, enslaved peoples, and dreamers, then forgotten—are ragged, bitter, and dying. They include Czernobog (Peter Stormare), a Slavic god of darkness wielding a bloody sledgehammer; Anansi (Orlando Jones), a trickster god of storytelling now fuming as a fiery Jamaican talk-show host; and Bilquis (Yetide Badaki), an ancient goddess of love reduced to devouring her lovers in a transcendent, sexual ritual.
When American Gods premiered in April 2017, it arrived with a thunderclap of hype and heavy expectations. Based on Neil Gaiman’s seminal 2001 novel—a sprawling, genre-defying road trip across a magical realist America—the task of adaptation was daunting. Could anyone truly capture the novel’s lyrical digressions, its bloody poetry, and its cast of forgotten deities? American Gods - Season 1
Where to Watch: Starz, Amazon Prime (select regions), Apple TV The old gods—brought to America by immigrants, enslaved
as Mr. Wednesday is the engine of the show. With a twinkle of mischief and a growl of ancient authority, McShane delivers Gaiman’s dialogue like Shakespearean verse. He is charming, manipulative, and terrifyingly patient. You never know if he is about to buy you a drink or sacrifice you to the ravens. Based on Neil Gaiman’s seminal 2001 novel—a sprawling,