Good Omens: Neil Gaiman reveals that his original choice for Aziraphale was Hugh Grant

The series adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s book, Good Omens, became a big hit when the show hit Prime Video. This summer saw the release of Good Omens 2, the follow-up to the successful first run. Michael Sheen has become the face of the character of Aziraphale, but Gaiman has recently revealed in a Tumblr post that he originally had another actor in mind as the angel. A fan asked him if anyone else came close to playing the roles of the duo. In a response, it was unveiled that Sheen was actually intended for Crowley, and Gaiman wanted Hugh Grant to embody Aziraphale.

ComingSoon.net reports that Gaiman explained, “I remember spending a lot of time pondering who Aziraphale could be back when Crowley was going to be Michael, and I think Hugh Grant was a leading contender in my head, but then somewhere in the middle of writing episode 3 Crowley became David Tennant and Michael Sheen became Aziraphale and once that had been decided it couldn’t have been anyone else.” Gaiman also insists that Sheen would have certainly made the demon more sinister if he had ended up portraying Crowley.

The details for Good Omens‘ plot reads,
“A mystery that takes us from before The Beginning, to biblical times, grave robbing in Victorian Edinburgh, the Blitz of 1940s England, all the way through to modern day, Good Omens 2 stars Michael Sheen and David Tennant as angel Aziraphale and demon Crowley, respectively. Also reprising their roles are Jon Hamm as archangel Gabriel, Doon Mackichan as archangel Michael, and Gloria Obianyo as archangel Uriel. Returning this season in new roles are Miranda Richardson as demon Shax, Maggie Service as Maggie, and Nina Sosanya as Nina, with new faces joining the misfits in Heaven and Hell: Liz Carr as angel Saraqael, Quelin Sepulveda as angel Muriel, and Shelley Conn as demon Beelzebub.”

Gaiman adds, “While Crowley is leery as to why the archangel has come to the bookshop, Aziraphale is keen to solve the mystery behind Gabriel’s condition. However, hiding the archangel from both Heaven and Hell quickly disrupts their lives in unforeseen ways. To solve this mystery and thwart Heaven and Hell in the process, the duo will need more than a miracle; they’ll need to once again rely on each other.”