'Good Omens' Casts Benedict Cumberbatch and Announces Premiere Date

The highly anticipated televison adaptation of Good Omens announces not just a premiere date, but one last casting update: Benedict Cumberbatch!

Anglophile TV watchers know Amazon Studios recently got into the British television game. The streaming service has produced Masterpiece-style shows like The Collection (which eventually even ran on PBS,) as well as BBC adaptations of King Lear and more recently the new version of Vanity Fair. Perhaps the most significant move Amazon made, outside of the $250 million spent on the rights to Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, is the multi-series deal they signed with best selling author Neil Gaiman at the end of last year. This move came after working closely with Gaiman on the first adaptation ever of the beloved British classic comedy novel he wrote with Terry Pratchett, Good Omens.

Good Omens is Gaiman's second TV adaptation after STARZ optioned and brought American Gods to the small screen in 2017. (Season 2 drops this March, and will immediately move to Amazon Prime streaming after each installment airs.) However, unlike American Gods, which is a multi-season epic with one episode a week, Good Omens is a one-off, a six-episode standalone miniseries. The official premiere date in May 31st and all six installments will arrive at once, making the show eligible for this year's Emmy race.