Like many self-described “nerds,” actor Orlando Jones came across Neil Gaiman’s sci-fi/fantasy classic American Gods well before Starz decided to turn it into a series from genre TV buffs Michael Green and Bryan Fuller. But despite his Gaiman love, Jones never expected in his wildest dreams he’d land the role of Mr. Nancy/Anansi—one of the book and show’s many imported old-world deities vying for the increasingly fractured attention span of modern-day Americans. And Jones is attacking the role of the arachnid African trickster god with all the glee you would expect from a true fan. Mr. Nancy/Anansi is the only one of Gaiman’s American gods so far to warrant a spin-off novel—2005’s Anansi Boys—and speaking with Vanity Fair, Jones reveals his character might get the TV spin-off treatment as well.

But that’s all putting the cart well before the horse. American Gods has yet to premiere its first episode on Starz—but when it does, at the end of April, it’s Jones’s character who gets the splashiest intro. Fans of the novel will remember the “Coming to America” vignettes peppered throughout Gaiman’s book that explore how—over centuries of belief—immigrants have brought various gods to American shores. In the show, these vignettes become pre-credits cold opens plunked at the front of most episodes. Jones’s Mr. Nancy lucks out with the most memorable of those stories, set on board an African slaving ship bound for American shores.

With a fiery, showstopping speech, Anansi—clad in an anachronistically sharp plaid suit and occasionally morphing into his spider form—uses the full force of his charismatic power of persuasion to inspire an uprising among his followers. It‘s both incredibly socially relevant and one of the most memorable introductions a TV character has had in a long time. As Jones explains, it may also be a hint of much more Mr. Nancy to come.

V.F. HWD: In a show that’s full of incredible character introductions, I think you got the best one. What did you think when you first read that Mr. Nancy “Coming to America” scene?

Orland Jones: I thought, I had no idea that Bryan Fuller and Michael Green were black dudes! Like, what is this amazing oral history of the Middle Passage and the African-American experience? Who are these black guys? I need to meet them! No, it’s a wonderfully written, incredible scene clearly in keeping with the way Neil Gaiman saw the character. Like you, I’m a massive fan of American Gods, so I was really just excited. At first, I kept flipping the pages, and I thought, This is like eight pages long. This is going to be fun. But are they going to run out of tape? What is this, an eight-minute take? I’m so excited to play Mr. Nancy—one of my favorite characters ever—this is really like a pinch-yourself moment the entire way. I’m just giddy about it.

How did you first come across Gaiman’s book?

A friend of mine had recommended it, because they know I’m a comic-book/graphic-novel nerd. First, they introduced me to Anansi Boys, and I was like, I wonder what happened before this. I did the total nerd thing where I read it, then I went back and I listened to the book-on-tape version of it. Then I started sharing it with various people. I completely went full fangirl and followed Neil Gaiman on Twitter and sent him a message. Then he responded, and that kind of set my fangirl action into overdrive.