American Gods: Who Are The Gods?

American Gods premieres tonight on Starz. The new television series is an adaptation of Neil Gaiman‘s 2001 novel about the Old Gods of the old traditions and the New Gods of the modern world coming into conflict in America.

Gaiman took inspiration from gods of real world myth when he created the Old Gods of American Gods. He also looked towards American culture’s unique obsession when coming up with the New Gods. Some may be distracted trying to figure out what each god represents, and so we’ve put together a handy quick guide to the gods of American Gods.

Quick SPOILER WARNING: We won’t be spoiling any of the major twists and turns of American Gods here, but in order to talk about these gods we had to reveal something of their character which may inform your future viewing. You’ve been warned.

It should also be noted that many, many gods appear in American Gods. We’re covering the primary players in this article. That should be enough to prime you for an informed viewing of American Gods.

Keep reading to learn who’s who in the Old Gods and the New Gods of American Gods.

Mr. Wednesday

Actor: Ian McShane

Mr. Wednesday present himself as an old school con man. He is that, perhaps even the original con man, but he is also so much more. He wants to unite the Old Gods in last glorious battle against the New Gods.

Over the course of Neil Gaiman’s novel, it is revealed bit by bit that Mr. Wednesday is actually an incarnation of Odin the All-Father, the Norse god of knowledge and wisdom. The name “Mr. Wednesday” comes from the etymology of the name of the day of the week Wednesday. The name was original “Wōdan’s Day” or “Odin’s day.”

Those most familiar with the Norse pantheon through Marvel Comics may be surprised at this version of Odin. In Marvel Comics, the ruler of Asgard is full of bluster often eager for war. The Odin of American Gods is also looking for war, but also shows more of the cunning and shrewdness of his original, mythological self.

Mad Sweeney

Actor: Pablo Schreiber

Mad Sweeney isn’t exactly a god the way the most of the Old Gods and New Gods are, but he is affected by the same waxing and waning of beliefs as the others.

Mad Sweeney is actually a leprechaun, and for a leprechaun, he has found himself with a string of bad luck by the time he runs into Shadow and Mr. Wednesday.

The name “Mad Sweeney” is also a reference to an old medieval Irish tale referred to either The Madness of Suibhne or Suibhne’s Frenzy when translated into English. The tale is a king who is cursed to leave a battle and take up a wanderers life, earning the nickname “Suibne Geilt” or “Mad Sweeney.”

However, that Mad Sweeney was not a leprechaun, suggest that the American Gods version of the character is either making a joke with his name or with the claim that he’s a leprechaun. That Mad Sweeney is actually unusually tall, especially for a leprechaun, may also be part of that joke, though he is able to pull gold coins from thin air.

Bilquis

Actor: Yetide Badaki

Bilquis is an ancient god of love, and possible the Queen of Sheba mentioned in the Bible. Without proper worship though, she has become a prostitute in America, taking love and bodies of men as a tribute.

The Biblical story of Bilquis visiting King Solomon is relatively well known but pales in comparison to the stories told of her in Jewish, Ethiopian, and Arabian traditions, where she purported to be half-jinn. In the East, she has become the subject of many of her won tales.

However, known of that helps the incarnation of Bilquis in America, where she longs for the relevancy she once had.

Czernobog

Actor: Peter Stormare

Czernobog (Black God) is the cursed Slavic god of darkness and evil. He is the twin brother of Bielebog (White God), the Slavic god of light and the sun.

Little is known about Czernobog from real world history. References to him were regional at best and most of the writing about him comes from ancient Christians who likely either knew little of or cared little for Slavic deities and therefore probably did not have a full cultural understanding of Czernobog’s role in Slavic religion. They refer to Czernobog as dark and accursed, though it is unclear if believers really saw him as malevolent.

In American Gods, Czernobog knows Mr. Wednesday is a con man and is suspicious of him when he comes trying to round up the Old Gods. He only reluctantly agrees to aid Odin’s cause, and only after losing a bet to Shadow.

Mr. Nancy

Actor: Orlando Jones

Mr. Nancy is the alias of Anansi, the African trickster god who also takes the form of a spider or a human-spider hybrid. Anansi loves to tell long stories, especially ones that illuminate his cleverness or the stupidity of others.

Anansi in American Gods proves to be one of Mr. Wednesday’s closest allies, and grows to become one for Shadow as well.

Anansi is also featured in Neil Gaiman’s book Anansi Boys. While the Anansi in Anansi Boys is definitely the same mythological figure, it is unclear if the two stories technically take place in the same world. Still, Orlando Jones is already interested in a spinoff.

Easter

Actor: Kristin Chenoweth

Easter is the Germanic goddess of the dawn. Compared to the other Old Gods in America, Easter does relatively well. She is able to absorb some of the residual worship from Christians celebrating the resurrection on what used to be her holy days, largely because of the bastardized tradition that led to the popular Easter bunny and egg hunt.

Because of her relative wealth of worship, Easter isn’t eager to get involved in Mr. Wednesday’s war with the New Gods and it takes quite a bit of convincing to get her to act in the conflict at all.

In Gaiman’s original novel, Jesus is only mentioned by name, though he did write a brief scene featuring Jesus that was cut from the book. However, the American Gods TV show has already cast Jeremy Davies as Jesus. There’s no guarantee it will happen, but a meeting between Jesus and Easter could yield some interesting results.

 

The Technical Boy

Actor: Bruce Langley

The Technical Boy is one of the New Gods and is perhaps the New God to most exemplify their flaws.

The Technical Boy is a personification of the Internet, computers, and technology in general.

In Gaiman’s novel, The Technical Boy is obese, but that stereotype has been updated for the television show to represent the modern internet troll.

In both versions of American Gods, the Technical Boy is brash, overconfident, petulant, and at times outright whiny.

The Technical Boy shows little respect fo the Old Gods but craves the respect and approval of the New Gods, often acting as if he’s already earned that respect.

Mr World

Actor: Crispin Glover

Mr. World is the leader of the New Gods and Mr. Wednesday’s opposite number. In the American Gods novel, Mr. World is the leader of team of “spooks,” a group of shady black hat spy types born from America’s infatuation with government coverups and conspiracies. His team also consists of a Mr. Town, Mr. Wood, and Mr. Stone, though its unclear of those underlings will appear in the American Gods television series.

The TV show has expanded Mr. World’s domain. In a timely update, Mr. World now represents the concept of globalization, hence the name. Mr. World supposedly seeks unity, though he keeps the full extent of his plans to himself.