Talking Preacher revealed the truth behind Tom Cruise exploding in the series premiere. He “can’t handle,” being possessed by the supernatural force known as Genesis, director Evan Goldberg paraphrased Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men.
Genesis is the unholy offspring of an angel and a demon. “It is the most powerful force in the universe,” noted writer-producer Sam Catlin. So powerful, in fact, that it puts the fear of God in God! The not-so-Almighty flees Heaven when it escapes. He tasks Adephi angels Fiore and DeBlanc (Tom Brooke and Anatol Yusef) with capturing Genesis, which descends from the heavens in search of a human host. It settles on the titular Preacher Jesse Custer (Dominic Cooper) after causing the deaths of several incompatible hosts including a devout preacher, a satanic priest and Tom Cruise a prominent member of the Church of Scientology. Jesse provides the perfect host for Genesis because of his conflicted nature.
“The idea was some of the characters may be too virtuous to handle the supernatural being,” explained Catlin. “Some of them may be too corrupt.”
Catlin stopped short of naming Cruise the Anti-Christ but another equally frightening possibility was proposed by executive producer Seth Rogen.
“Some may just be too Tom Cruise,” Rogen suggested.
