Warning: Preacher season 2 spoilers are discussed during this interview.

One of my favorite shows on television is AMC’s Preacher, which is based on Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s comic series and brought to life by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and Sam Catlin. Loaded with crazy characters, graphic violence, sick humor, and really well done action set pieces, Preacher consistently surprises and it’s like nothing else on TV.

If you’re not familiar with the story, Preacher started off with an inaugural season that was essentially a prequel to events that happen throughout the violent graphic novel, which revolves around a preacher (Dominic Cooper) who has inherited a power called Genesis (a supernatural entity that has chosen his body as a host and gives him the power to make people do whatever he says). Now entering its third season, the show is using more of the source material as it follows Jesse Custer (Dominic Cooper), his girlfriend Tulip (Ruth Negga), and his friend and vampire Cassidy (Joseph Gilgun) as they search for God.

With Preacher season 3 starting up Sunday night on AMC, a few days ago I got to speak with Ruth Negga. She talked about what it takes to make an episode of Preacher in eight shooting days, what the third season is about, how much she knows about each season going in, the unique nature of the show, the changing relationship between Tulip, Jesse and God, if she was nervous Tulip wouldn’t survive being killed at the end of last season, and more. In addition, Negga also discussed getting to work with director James Gray on Ad Astra.

Check out what Ruth Negga had to say below and tune in Sunday night if you want to see some fantastic television.

Collider: How are you doing today?

RUTH NEGGA: Good. How are you doing?

I'm doing excellent. Let me start by saying how much I love Preacher, and I'm super happy you guys got a third season.

NEGGA: Thank you so much for saying that. It means a lot, genuinely. It's nice when people like what you spend five months and sixteen hours a day doing.

I think that's what a lot of people don't realize about the making of television, or movies, is the insane hours. It's not glamorous.

NEGGA: It really isn't. It's not glamorous. It's grueling. It is. But at the same time, you're doing what you love, so.

Completely.

NEGGA: I just wish it was like eight hours a day.

(laughs) Sure, I think everyone would-- absolutely. So let me jump in. The last season ended with your character dying. My question is before you get that script, is Sam [Catlin] or someone pulling you aside and saying, "Look, we're gonna kill you, but we're really not gonna kill you," or is he making you read that in the script and you're like, "WTF?"

NEGGA: I'm like, "Come on, guys. You can't kill off Tulip." Who in their right mind would kill off Tulip, unless I was being an asshole on set and they needed to kill me off?

(laughs) Completely. No, but do they give you-- do they tell you in advance, "This is the storyline. This is what we're gonna do," or do they mess with you a little bit…you know what I mean.

NEGGA: Sometimes they do. They'll give you the old heads up, yeah. I mean, to be honest, it's not like-- if this is your run-of-the-mill, not bonkers TV show, you'd be like, "Oh, my god. There's a chance I'm not coming back." When it's Preacher, you're like, "Of course they're gonna kill me, and of course--" nothing surprises me anymore, you know?

One of the many things I love about the show is that it blends this really twisted stuff with violence and action and humor. It's like nothing on television. Can you sort of talk about that aspect of the show?

NEGGA: I don't know how to talk about it really because a lot of it is so visual and a lot of it is really pushing the envelope, really, and pushing the boundaries of what you can do, but at the same time, it's not done with any malice. To me, it's basically a rumination of how ridiculous this world can be. I think that's what the comics were, a treatise on, "Look what we do to one another 'cause of all these stupid rules we make up. Do we really believe all this stuff? And look what happens when we do." At its center it's not just about blowing up sort of a narrative, just like normal television just to show we can, or from arrogance, or kind of some state of "look at us," or, "aren't we so cool?"

And there's a depth to what we're doing, and there's an engagement with our characters, not just the three leads, but everyone who comes in and out of our show. And I think that's why it appeals to people because we're not here to destroy. We're here to inquire about the world we live in, in a way that is not just-- not in a heavy-handed, somber way, which is fine and cool, but it's really asking, "What the hell are we doing here, and why?" But also, it sort of has this sort of intimate moments between these characters.

I've seen the first two episodes of season three, and the show finally reveals God's voice. And unlike what people may be expecting, God reveals himself to you, to your character. Talk a little bit about how that impacts the relationship between everyone and how that sort of changes the direction of the season.

NEGGA: I think I can't really talk about the impact that it has on everybody else because I think everyone else has their interpretation of it. I just concentrate on the impact it had on Tulip because I don't know. I don't really know how I feel about the impact it has on Jesse or Cassidy. I think for Tulip, it's sort of shock. She's like, "Who, me? He chose me? Hold on a minute. This is very fishy." There's not too much I want to say about that because I think it unfolds in a more interesting manner than I can verbalize. But I think what's important about the kind of God and Tulip dialogue is that it is sort of a balance of power that surprisingly turned on its head, and there's questioning of the status quo that we didn't expect. Just because we've sort of invested someone with a quality that is staged, do they really know best? Are they really the person that we've sort of made them become? We've invested in them, but are they that person? Can they meet those requirements? It's funny. I think the human condition is that we are always looking for someone to have more knowledge than us so they have the answers. And I think what our show investigates is the idea that maybe no one does.

How much do you typically learn about the arc of a season before filming begins, and how much are you sort of getting it script by script?

NEGGA: Well, it depends. Well, it depends on the theme because there's not just one arc. I mean, there's many arcs. Many, many, many arcs. And some you know about more than others. I have a bi-weekly conversation with Sam about the scripts, and so I feel like I've been allowed a voice, and that's very important to me because I feel like at this stage, we've done three seasons now, essentially the three of us. So you know our characters intimately, and I think that we have a very valid say and sort of-- not maybe in arc, but maybe sort of the kind of interactions that we have and the dialogue that we have. A lot of it is just making it up as we go along, and that's not a bad thing because sometimes things change and dynamics change, and you go, "What about this? What about that?" And I think that's a very exciting way to work. And it keeps it alive and it keeps it vibrant, and nothing is locked down because I don't think we're a locked down kind of show.

Before you start filming season three, are you re-watching any of season two, or can you just show up on set and sort of morph into Tulip immediately? How do you get ready to come back to a show like that?

NEGGA: I sleep a lot. I hibernate.

Is that really what you do?

NEGGA: I mean you have to, yeah. Honestly, it's like being a bear. You go “Well, I’m gonna have to eat lots of things and get ready for the hard summer ahead catching salmon in the old river and being very active.” It's hard work. It's actually physically and emotionally demanding. It's long hours every day and, it's a constantly evolving process, and it takes five months of your life. At this stage, I don't know. I think unconsciously at this stage, as an actor, there are things I do that I don't even know I'm doing to go back at it, to put Tulip back on. And there's things that I know and I unconsciously do them, and that's- I don't know. How does a mathematician remember how to do math again? It's in your body, isn't it? It's in your brain. It's some part of your body and your toolbox, I suppose. I mean, look, I don't know if I'm doing it well or not. That's for everyone else to say.

The answer is you are.

NEGGA: Well, I mean, the thing is it's very hard to verbalize what we do about this because frankly it’s sorta cerebral. Emotionally changing. I dunno if I can really describe that in a way that will do it justice.

What do you think would surprise people about the making of Preacher?

NEGGA: How much we laugh. Well, I don't think that would surprise anyone. I mean, everyone laughs. We giggle, just huge giggle.

Before I run out of time with you, I am a huge fan of James Gray, and can't wait to see--

NEGGA: Yeah, me too.

So what was it like working with him on Ad Astra and making that project?

NEGGA: He is just so kind, so lovely, so funny, so open. I wasn't on it for very long. He's such a lovely human being to work with, and you know what? It makes such a difference. And I'm not very good at this sci-fi thing, I can't really understand them, but I was working with the cinematographer and was thinking, “Wow, I've never done this before. This is exciting.”

He made it super collaborative and really low pressure, low-key. And you can see and feel a filmmaker's role in their film. It kind of vibrates off the screen, and I very much feel like you can feel that when you watch his films that he's a very soulful, kind human being, and he really brought up questions about why we're here and in the most genuine way. I feel you can feel that from his films 'cause he is like that as a human being.

Completely. And also, the last film he made, Lost City of Z, is just so fantastic.

NEGGA: I love all of it. When I was watching The Immigrant he other day, and I was like “I can feel that,” the hints of him in this definitely. He's got great compassion. I think that's the word.

Before filming began, he was telling me that he was nervous about making Ad Astra just because it's his first time making a sci-fi movie, and some of the things he wanted to do, he'd never done before.

NEGGA: Well, it didn't seem like he was stressed at all throughout that movie. So maybe it's 'cause it just feels like he's big on collaboration. He just felt like he was on someone on set who was like- which if I ever make film, you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to use everyone's expertise because that's what filming is, isn't it? It's a whole community of people with amazing expertise. It really is a community, and I think the best directors, for me, they work with that. They use it. They rein it in to make an excellent film. They're all brilliant. Well, there's some people who are. But I think it's very important to recognize in your crew is really your crew navigating ship.

I've heard that about Spielberg that one of the reasons that everyone loves him is that he will always take anyone's idea and then just use the best one.

NEGGA: Yeah. I mean, that to me is basically what we do in the industry. I don't think you can be a lone wolf in this industry. Even if you're shy and a loner, when you come together whether you're making film or a play, we're all in it together, whether you want it or not. It’s a ship. It's basically navigating in a way through the sea, stormy sea, on a ship. You need everyone hauling ass.

Thank you so much for giving me your time, and as I said, I cannot wait to watch the rest of the season.

NEGGA: Thank you so much. It was a pleasure talking to you. Bye. Have a great day.

You too. Thank you.