Cloris Leachman is joining the cast of upcoming Starz show “American Gods” — as are Peter Stormare, Chris Obi and Mousa Kraish.
Production on the 10-episode FremantleMedia North America (FMNA) series began this week in Toronto, Canada, but it will shift south to the United States soon enough. “American Gods” is an adaptation of Neil Gaiman‘s contemporary fantasy novel.
Below are the new character descriptions, all in Starz and FMNA’s own words.
Leachman (“Raising Hope”) plays Zorya Vechernyaya, the eldest of three sisters who watch over the constellations, guarding against horrors forgotten by modern man. Once accustomed to royal status, the sisters have learned to survive on far less in a country that has no memory of them.
Stormare (“Fargo”) plays Czernobog. A Slavic god of darkness and evil, Czernobog is reluctant to join the coming war, wary of Wednesday’s motivations.
Obi (“Snow White and the Hunstman”) plays Anubis, the commanding ancient Egyptian god of the dead, gently guiding mortals through the judgment of their souls.
Kraish (“Superbad”) will play The Jinn, a mythical creature of the fire who understands a person’s deepest desires better than they do. He fears for his safety with the coming war, and considers fleeing America.
The previously announced cast includes Ricky Whittle (“The 100”) as Shadow Moon, Ian McShane (“Deadwood”) as Mr. Wednesday, Emily Browning (“Sucker Punch”) as Laura Moon, Sean Harris (“The Borgias”) as Mad Sweeney, Yetide Badaki (“Aquarius”) as Bilquis, Bruce Langley (“Deadly Waters“) as Technical Boy, Crispin Glover (“Back to the Future”) as Mr World, and Jonathan Tucker (“Kingdom”) as Low Key Lyesmith.
Bryan Fuller (“Hannibal”) and Michael Green (“The River”) are writers and showrunners. David Slade (“Hannibal”) is directing the pilot and additional episodes. FMNA’s Craig Cegielski and Stefanie Berk are executive producing the series along with Fuller, Green, Slade and Neil Gaiman.
Senior Vice Presidents of Original Programming Marta Fernandez and Ken Segna are the Starz executives in charge of “American Gods.” Starz retains all network pay TV and SVOD rights to the project. FremantleMedia is distributing the series worldwide.
Leachman is represented by Innovative Artists and Juliet Green Management. Stormare is represented by ICM Partners and Silver Lining Entertainment. Obi is represented by The Gersh Agency, United Agents and Untitled Entertainment. Kraish is represented by Stone Manners Salners Agency and Velocity Entertainment Partners.