‘American Gods’ Season 2 In Trouble, Starz Looking For A New Showrunner To Pair With Neil Gaiman
American Gods season 2 production is still pending as Starz boss Chris Albrecht admits trouble following showrunners exit. Bryan Fuller and Michael Green exited the show amidst creative friction with Fremantle Media.
CEO Chris Albrecht admitted trouble surrounding American Gods season 2 during the semi-annual Television Critics Association panel last Friday according to Hollywood Reporter. Following the exit of showrunners Bryan Fuller and Micahel Green, Neil Gaiman will take on a bigger role in the upcoming season. Albrecht revealed that Gaiman will take on the showrunner function while the network looks for his partner, who will oversee the television part of the series.
The breakout Starz drama was renewed for a second season in summer 2017. However, showrunners Fuller and Green allegedly had disputes with Fremantle Media over the creative direction of the show. Chris Albrecht seemed to imply as much.
“It has faced many of the challenges that terrific, complex, premium shows face when trying to get successive seasons, especially when art comes before commerce.”
Addressing the friction between the former producers and Freemantle, Albrecht said that both parties maintain a very good relationship. He added that they are working out a win-win solution for the people involved and the show itself. When his words made rounds on the internet, Michael Green took to Twitter to post a vague message about a possible misinformation.
Meanwhile, the Starz CEO maintained that Fuller and Green were neither fired nor did they resign. In fact, Albrecht said that the two will continue to be involved in American Gods Season 2 as their schedule permits. As such, Gaiman will step in and take the showrunner’s duties while the network looks for another person to partner with him. Looking for the right producer seemed to hold back production. Sources claim that several producers already turned down Fremantle as they don’t want to replace Fuller or Green. The same issue has delayed and reduced the episode count of the first season.
Following the announcement from Starz CEO, American Gods author Neil Gaiman refuted the news on Twitter. He pointed out that he has a showrunning commitment in place already and he won’t be taking another one, Vulture reported. While he seemed to disapprove the role Albrecht handed him, he planned on working closely with the new showrunner to build American Gods – just as he did with Fuller and Green when they were running the show.
#BryanFuller is joining Anne Rice to develop #TheVampireChronicles TV series: https://t.co/UDrzXSlc5H pic.twitter.com/asTBMcuoOh
— Nerdist (@nerdist) January 11, 2018
Meanwhile, Fuller just signed another television project, one that seemed close to his heart. Christopher Rice took to Facebook to announce Fuller’s dream finally coming to life. In a funny anecdote about Fuller’s obsession with his mother’s (Anne Rice) work, he announced that Fuller has officially joined the team adapting Interview with the Vampire into a TV series. The TV series is currently underway with Paramount Television and Anonymous Content.
