This interview has been edited for clarity.
Javier Perez: Ordained feels very deliberate in what it tells you and shows you, a real noir. It really likes to dwell on those moments of conversation, and that helps highlight the seriousness of what is at hand. What is the approach that you took on this story?
Robert Venditti: It started with the idea of a priest performing last rites and taking a dying patient’s final confession, who he quickly learns is a notorious mobster. Then that mobster makes a miraculous recovery, and decides he has to kill the priest to whom he confessed all his crimes. It’s a concept that lends itself to a noir, street-level story, which is something I’d not really had a chance to write since my first series, The Surrogates. Since then, I’ve spent most of my career in outer space.
What appeals to me about writing a story like Ordained is how up-close and personal it is. So much of the story comes down to the nuance of dialogue and the expressiveness of the characters in the art. Whenever possible, we wanted to draw the reader in and make it feel like they’re part of the character’s conversations—or, at least, eavesdropping as they ride in the same elevator.
Until we get to the action sequences. When that happens, the story opens up into
double-page spreads, and all bets are off. After so much tension and internal conflict, the action becomes a release.
Perez: I love the art, the use of shades and shadows. It has a weight to it. What’s it like working with Trevor Hairsine?
Venditti: Trevor is amazing. I’d only worked with him one time before Ordained, on a couple of issues of X-O Manowar way back in the first year of that run. I’ve been trying to work with him again ever since. He’s the rare type of talent whose action sequences are kinetic and explosive, while his quieter moments really make you feel the emotions and the acting. He’s also heavy on the inks, and all that black is the perfect tone for a crime story. Even more so for a story where the main character wears a priest’s black clothes and white collar the entire time.
As a collaborator, Trevor is everything you can ask for. My scripts tend to focus a lot on
mood and emotion, and let the artist take it from there. On page three of the first issue, Trevor drew this image of Father Roy walking away from his church. It could be just a simple shot that establishes the exterior of the church and gives the reader a bit of geography. Instead, Trevor gave it so much weight — from the expression on Father Roy’s face to the subtle way he holds the strap of his sacramental travel bag with both hands. Is he protecting the contents of the bag, or is he clutching the bag to receive the contents’ protection? A visual like that adds so much complexity to the storytelling.
Perez: I like the themes of fate and faith that are being played with here. Whatever circumstances lead to the father getting that phone call, or the miracle happening to the villain, is a fascinating twist.
Venditti: I would say the theme is less about religion and more about faith. What do we believe in? Father Roy believes in God. Cormac Byrne, the mobster, believes in himself. Byrne’s men believe in Byrne. And the hitman known as “The Machine”…well, The Machine doesn’t believe in anything except doing the work. How does what we believe in lead us to make choices, and how do those choices influence who we are for ourselves and those around us? Every character in the story believes in something, even if those beliefs change.
Perez: I really liked issue one and all the questions that it raises. I assume that we will get answers, but what can you tell me about Father Roy?
Venditti: Father Roy wasn’t always a priest. He’s a former Navy SEAL who found his faith in the midst of combat and made a promise to himself and God to never kill again. Cormac Byrne probably wishes he had known this before he put out a kill order on Father Roy to every henchman and hitman in St. Louis.
Father Roy will be tested. All the lethality and combat training lurking inside him
wants to see daylight again, particularly when it’s the innocent people around him who are getting hurt. That tumultuous internal conflict is harder for him to grapple with than the external one.
Perez: Can we get info on Ordained Presents: The Machine? And how will that be a part of the Ordained books?
Venditti: The Machine is the A-list hitman, a blue-collar guy who works with his hands and takes pride in his work. Between issues two and three of the main series, we thought it’d be fun to follow The Machine and find out why it’s so hard for Cormac Byrne to get him on the phone. Even assassins-for-hire, it turns out, have a busy season.
In the original outline for the series, The Machine stayed pretty much a mystery—more a
force of nature than a man. But as I got down to writing, I realized there was much more to him and that hiding it from the audience was hurting the story. What we learn about The Machine is integral to Ordained and the larger mythology we’re building.
Perez: How do you feel this book adds to the ongoing Bad Idea lineup? Really looking forward to the last issue of Survive!
Venditti: I try not to think about those things. I am incredibly proud to have stories like Ordained, Planet Death, Survive, and Hank Howard, Pizza Detective all on the shelves in the same year.
There’s a lot of variety there. The nice thing about Bad Idea is that the story always comes first. They aren’t looking for a particular genre or to fill specific slots in their publishing plan. They just want good stories, no matter what form or shape they come in. It’s an amazing place to work.
Perez: Is there any news on the movie development of Ordained? Is there anything you are allowed to talk about?
RV: We’ve already announced that Derek Kolstad, the creator of the John Wick franchise, is writing the adaptation, and Colin Farrell is attached to play Father Roy. In both instances, they were our first choice. Colin is so on board that he has already talked with Keanu Reeves about the training regimen he went through for John Wick. Beyond that, I can’t say much more. Having been through this process in the past with Surrogates, these things are complicated and take time. But we’re all feeling good about where we are.
Perez: New Year coming up, and convention season is about to kick off. Will we see the Bad Idea and Ordained crew on the road?
Venditti: Absolutely. I know I’ll be at C2E2 in March and SC Comicon in April. Beyond that, I’m still building out my convention schedule for next year. But we’ll be on the road promoting Ordained, as well as several new projects I’m working on that haven’t been announced yet.
Perez: Is there anything you’d like to add?
Venditti: As always, nothing happens without the retailers and readers supporting our work. I hope everyone who reads Ordained enjoys it. We’re putting the second issue together for the printer as I type this, and the story only gets bigger from here.
