Preacher
Release Date:
No Release Date at this Time
Preacher, the story as it is told in the comic books, is a $110 million, seven-hour movie that requires the dark wit and careful touch of a David Fincher or the edgy, kinetic approach of a Doug Liman. Preacher, the story as it is to be told on the big screen, is a $20 million, two-hour romp directed by Rachel Talalay, the still-unproven director of Tank Girl.
Preacher began its run as a monthly comic book in 1994 and ended in December of 1999. Written by Garth Ennis and illustrated by Steve Dillon, it told a bloody yet hilarious story of friendship, loyalty, love, religion and just about any other topic you can think of. The story itself is about a preacher named Jesse Custer who is one day struck by a tremendous ball of energy that falls from the sky and destroys his congregation. We learn that the ball of energy was no ordinary UFO and it is indeed a mystery that has literally fallen from heaven. The story leads Jesse down a path in a literal search for God, who has now left his throne, and follows Jesse's run-ins with some of the craziest characters ever created.
The story itself is a wonderfully dark look at how messed up humanity can be and how love and friendship endure through all the bizarre happenings of the world. Preacher is sheer genius and is one of the most critically-acclaimed comic books ever released. It is a very complex story that is definitely not a superhero-type tale and thusly will be very difficult to translate onto the big screen. One of the great challenges of bringing it to film is that the story is perfect for, and absolutely thrives in, the comic-book medium. Its over-the-top violence and perfect use of the medium make any translation to film ultimately flawed.
Early reports have James Marsden, of X-Men fame, attached in the role of Jesse Custer. Custer, by the way, is in his mid-30s and is a tough-as-nails, battle-worn man (think Sean Penn), so the casting is immediately called into question. The positive news, if there is to be any, is that the green-lighted screenplay was written by the original author, Ennis, so that screenplay has most likely been faithful to the story. With that in mind, you never know what may come of this film. The bar was set incredibly high by the comic (a must-read for anybody who enjoys reading), so the film will have to vault really high to meet fan demand. Hopefully, the film will defy expectations and be a very good movie. (Walid Habboub/BOP)
August 27, 2003
Filming still hasn't started, so 2004 is looking like the earliest we'll see this one. (Jennifer Turnock/BOP)
Comparison films for Preacher |
Title |
Date |
Opening |
Adjusted Opening |
Screens |
PSA |
Adj PSA |
Total BO |
Adjusted Total |
Mult |
| X2: X-Men United |
5/2/03 | 85.56 |
85.56 |
3741 |
22871.00 |
22871.0 |
214.95 |
214.95 |
2.51 |
| X-Men, The |
7/14/00 | 54.47 |
60.93 |
3025 |
18007.00 |
19376.7 |
157.30 |
175.97 |
2.89 |
| Blade II |
3/22/02 | 32.53 |
33.82 |
2707 |
12017.00 |
12017.0 |
81.65 |
84.89 |
2.51 |
| Rock, The |
6/7/96 | 25.07 |
34.20 |
2392 |
10481.00 |
13753.3 |
134.07 |
182.91 |
5.35 |
| Spawn |
8/1/97 | 21.21 |
27.86 |
2536 |
8364.00 |
10568.9 |
54.97 |
72.21 |
2.59 |
| Blade |
8/21/98 | 17.07 |
21.94 |
2322 |
7351.00 |
9090.8 |
70.10 |
90.12 |
4.11 |
| Judge Dredd |
6/30/95 | 12.29 |
17.03 |
2204 |
5576.00 |
7434.7 |
34.67 |
48.05 |
2.08 |
| Crow, The |
5/13/94 | 11.85 |
17.51 |
1573 |
7533.00 |
10708.7 |
50.64 |
74.84 |
4.27 |
| Sling Blade |
3/21/97 | 3.03 |
3.98 |
1020 |
2971.00 |
3754.2 |
24.49 |
32.17 |
6.32 |
| Tank Girl |
3/31/95 | 2.02 |
2.80 |
1341 |
1506.00 |
2008.0 |
3.95 |
5.47 |
1.96 |
