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Seth Rogen hopes Tom Cruise 'finds it hilarious' that he is killed off in 'Preacher'

By Karen Butler
American actor Tom Cruise attends the winner's room at the EE British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Opera House in London on February 14, 2016. File Photo by Rune Hellestad/UPI
1 of 2 | American actor Tom Cruise attends the winner's room at the EE British Academy Film Awards at the Royal Opera House in London on February 14, 2016. File Photo by Rune Hellestad/UPI | License Photo

LOS ANGELES, May 30 (UPI) -- Preacher producer and director Seth Rogen says he hopes Tom Cruise "finds it hilarious" that he is killed off in the show.

Based on the comic books by Garth Ennis, the wickedly funny, supernatural-horror series focuses on Texas minister Jesse Custer, who is seeking redemption after a life of crime. Early in the pilot, a mysterious supernatural force infiltrates several people and causes them to spontaneously combust. Televisions in the backgrounds of other scenes show news reports saying Cruise was one of the victims. At the end of the episode, the entity finds Jesse.

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Asked by host Chris Hardwick on Sunday's edition of Talking Preacher if he thinks Cruise is aware he is part of the show's running joke, Rogen laughed: "Oh, yeah. I think he knows. It got a lot of press when it first premiered in South by Southwest that we blew up Tom Cruise, as you would imagine. My hope is that he finds it hilarious."

Rogen also explained why Jesse survives the possession when this mysterious life form has destroyed others.

"They can't handle it. For whatever reason, they are not the right match for whatever it's looking for," he explained.

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"Not the right combination of good and evil," elaborated showrunner Sam Catlin. "There is something about the power of the conflict in Jesse that allows this entity [to inhabit him]... It has good and angelic and demonic qualities in itself, so sort of the idea was some of the characters may be too virtuous to handle the supernatural being, some of them may be too corrupt, Tom Cruise, it's up to..."

"Some might just be too Tom Cruise," Rogen quipped.

Starring Dominic Cooper, Ruth Negga and Joe Gilgun, Preacher airs Sunday nights on AMC.

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