The Preacher series over at AMC is humming along following the confirmation of Dominic Cooper as main character Jesse Custer. The newest cast members seem to indicate that the series will indeed be adding new characters to flesh out the story a bit for the screen, and also to fill out the pews in Custer’s ill-fated church.
Jamie Anne Allman from The Killing and Derek Wilson from Rectify are these new additions, portraying Betsy and Donny Schenck respectively according to Slash Film:
Betsy is “a meek wife who appears to suffer beatings by the hand of her husband, Donny. When the Preacher checks up on her, though, she tells a different story.” And Donny is “a Civil War re-enactor and abusive thug who gets into altercations with Jesse Custer but nevertheless shows up to church on Sundays.”
https://twitter.com/The_News_DIVA/status/595727485330919425?lang=en
The reason I call these important cast members isn’t because of their influence on the greater story, but more due to their influence on Custer as a character. They will obviously play a role in his transformation away from small town preacher and in his meeting with the fallen supernatural entity Genesis:
Despite the clerical collar, Jesse’s actually a formidable fighter, a legacy from the violent, mysterious past he’s trying to put behind him. But when he’s pushed to the limit by Donnie Schenck, a Civil War re-enacting redneck wife beater, Jesse loses control and beats Donnie half to death in a vicious, horrific attack.
Slash Film notes that the roles will stick around for a few episodes, so they will be more than just one off characters. I like that the show really seems to be taking shape and I’m interested to see how the finished product turns out. It’s a tough property to attempt to adapt, so I’m keeping my hopes low. If it has half the success of The Walking Dead, fans should be happy.
(Via Slash Film / Deadline / The Hollywood Reporter)
