John Constantine Won’t be Lighting Up Any Cigarettes in the TV Series

“It’s the one thing, a compromise I guess,” the director said in an interview with Collider. “On network, it’s the one thing you can’t smoke on network. That’s one of his character traits. We’re working around that. We’re trying to get aspects of it in there as much as possible. We’ll see.”

He went on to add that their intention with the series was to be as scary as possible, which only made the smoking ban more maddening. “The intention is to be as dark and scary as possible with the show. And that was our whole kind of plan going in, to make it scary. So we’re going to explore all kinds of things. But the smoking is very frustrating. Who knows where it will go; where the story will go; where the character will go? There’s still lots of options.”

In “Constantine,” based on the comic book series “Hellblazer,” seasoned demon hunter and master of the occult John Constantine specializes in giving hell… hell. Armed with a ferocious knowledge of the dark arts and his wickedly naughty wit, he fights the good fight – or at least he did. With his soul already damned to hell, he’s decided to leave his do-gooder life behind. But when demons target Liv, the daughter of one of Constantine’s oldest friends, he’s reluctantly thrust back into the fray – and he’ll do whatever it takes to save her. Before long, it’s revealed that Liv’s “second sight,” an ability to see the worlds behind our world and predict supernatural occurrences, is a threat to a mysterious new evil that’s rising in the shadows. And now it’s not just Liv who needs protection; the angels are starting to get worried too. So, together, Constantine and Liv must use her power and his skills to travel the country, find the demons that threaten our world – and send them back where they belong. After that, who knows… maybe there’s hope for him and his soul after all.

From Executive Producer David S. Goyer (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight Rises) and director Neil Marshall (“Game of Thrones,” The Descent) comes a dark new thriller that proves fighting evil is a hell of a job. The series stars Matt Ryan, Lucy Griffiths, Harold Perrineau and Charles Halford. “Constantine” premieres October 24 on NBC.