Cate Cameron/The CW
Ricky Whittle, a regular on The 100, joins Starz's spin on the popular Neil Gaiman novel.
Starz's long-gestating spin on Neil Gaiman's American Gods is gaining steam, filling one prominent role. The drama has added actor Ricky Whittle, best known for appearing on the CW cult hit The 100, to play the character Shadow Moon.
“I'm thrilled that Ricky has been cast as Shadow," said Gaiman of the casting. "His auditions were remarkable. The process of taking a world out of the pages of a book, and putting it onto the screen has begun. American Gods is, at its heart, a book about immigrants, and it seems perfectly appropriate that Shadow will, like so much else, be coming to America. I'm delighted Ricky will get to embody Shadow. Now the fun starts.”
Described in the book as a recently-paroled convict, Shadow becomes the reluctant bodyguard of a mysterious con-man who goes by "Mr. Wednesday."
Showrunners Bryan Fuller and Michael Green commented, “We searched every continent and country and all the islands in between for our Shadow Moon, and we are lucky to have found Ricky. Fans of the novel will find he has every bit of the heart of the character they fell in love with.”
Whittle, a British import, has also appeared in Austenland, Mistresses and NCIS. He is repped by TalentWorks and Creative Artists Management in the UK and Untitled Entertainment in the US.
This marks the first big development for FremantleMedia North America's adaptation of the award-winning book since it was picked up to series in June. It is set to begin filming in April.
