As Starz develop their small screen adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s bestselling American Gods, Ian McShane has been brought in to headline the show.

The Deadwood (and Lovejoy, obviously…) actor has signed on to play Mr. Wednesday in the show, joining a cast that also includes Ricky Whittle as Shadow Moon.

On the news, Gaiman said, “When you write a beloved character (beloved with, or despite, or because of all his faults) like Mr. Wednesday, you get to watch the internet trying to cast the role. I’ve seen a hundred names suggested, but few make me grin like Ian McShane does. I’ve already been lucky enough to have him in one film (he was bright blue in it, animated, and probably Polish). Now I count myself even luckier: he’s made the journey from Lovejoy to American Gods.”

Bryan Fuller, who will be overseeing the series with Gaiman, added, “Actor. Icon. And new god. It is a goddamn delight to be collaborating with the incomparable Ian McShane – again and for the first time – on a story about faith and belief, with the utmost faith and belief in Mr. McShane as our Mr. Wednesday.”

American Gods itself has been translated into over 30 languages over the years, bagging a whole host of awards from Hugo to Nebula and most things in between. The plot centres on a war between old and new gods, with the traditional mythological gods losing believers to the younger gods who reflect modern society’s love of celebrity, money, drugs, and the like. Mr. Wednesday is key to all of this, as he’s depicted as a conman travelling across the country, although he’s actually one of the older gods on a mission to collect forces to tackle the brewing war.