The Season 3 premiere of American Gods is almost here, and the Starz original series officially unveiled one of the newest arrivals. A still photo from a scene in the new season introduced Blythe Danner as the Greek goddess of the harvest, Demeter.
TVLine has the exclusive picture that ended up creating more questions than it answered. The still shows Danner as Demeter, talking to her former love, Mr. Wednesday and Shadow. The biggest question that arises immediately is just why Ian McShane's character is dressed in scrubs? It's also not known what Demeter's role is going to be in American Gods Season 3, though Starz has let a bit slip about her character.
Apparently, the Greek goddess was involuntarily committed to a psychiatric facility. It stands to reason that Mr. Wednesday is wearing scrubs either during, or directly after, the man otherwise known as Odin sprung his former girlfriend from the facility. It's been previously reported the two deities' romantic entanglements will play a role in the upcoming season. Danner is currently set to appear in four episodes when Season 3 of American Gods debuts in January.
The upcoming run will see Ricky Whittle's Shadow living in Lakeside, Wisconsin after finding out that he is Mr. Wednesday's son. His birthright makes Shadow a demigod, though a recent American Gods Season 3 trailer shows he might be trying to forge a path and destiny outside of his life on the road with Odin. When he's not hanging out with Mr. Wednesday, Shadow will be guided by the Orishas, aka the gods that are his Black ancestors. It's also thought he'll find out that Lakeside has a darker side to it hiding just under the surface.
Shadow will also clearly be helping Wednesday free Demeter from the facility she's been imprisoned in. It's not clear if her past with Odin means she understands the demigod identity of Shadow. Danner is just one of several changes in the show's cast. She'll be joined by Lela Loren as newspaper reporter Marguerite Olsen, Julia Sweeney as Lakeside's busybody Ann-Marie Hinzelmann, and Danny Trejo as one of the incarnations of Mr. World, among other newcomers.
There are also a couple of well-known actors and characters leaving American Gods. Orlando Jones' exit is the most publicized after he was fired last December, but Mousa Kraish was written off the show as well. Kraish played the Jinn who made numerous appearances in the first two seasons.
Based on the Neil Gaiman novel of the same name, American Gods stars Ricky Whittle, Emily Browning, Pablo Schreiber, Crispin Glover, Bruce Langley, Yetide Badaki, Ian McShane, Mousa Kraish, Kahyun Kim, Demore Barnes, and Chris Obi. Season 3 began filming on Oct. 9 and will premiere on Jan. 10, 2021.
Source: TVLine