''All Signs of Death'' is a
unaired television pilot based on the 2009 novel ''The Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death'' by
Charlie Huston
Charlie Huston is a novelist and TV writer. His twelve novels span several genres from crime to horror to science fiction. His books have been published in English by Ballentine, Del Rey, Mulholland and Orion, and translated into nine other lang ...
, who also wrote the teleplay. Huston served as executive producer along with
Alan Ball who directed the pilot. Filmed, then shelved, in 2010, it was produced as part of Ball's multi-project contract with
HBO.
Story
''All Signs of Death'' tells the story of Webster "Web" Fillmore Goodhue, a typical twentysomething slacker living in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
who becomes a
crime scene cleaner and discovers that the work helps to ease the pain of his own past trauma. However, Web soon finds himself at the center of a murder mystery that eventually puts his own life in jeopardy.
Cast
*
Ben Whishaw
Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor and producer. After winning a British Independent Film Award for his performance in ''My Brother Tom'' (2001), he was nominated for an Olivier Award for his portrayal of the titl ...
as Webster "Web" Fillmore Goodhue
*
Clayne Crawford
Joseph Crawford (born April 20, 1978), known professionally as Clayne Crawford, is an American actor. He is known for portraying the role of Martin Riggs on the Fox action comedy-drama television series ''Lethal Weapon'' (2016–2018). He also ...
as Chev
*
James Read
James Christopher Read (born July 31, 1953) is an American actor. He played the role of George Hazard in the ''North and South'' television miniseries, and had a recurring role as Victor Bennett on the supernatural series ''Charmed'' between 2 ...
as Westin Nye
Production
Ball became aware of Huston through
Charlaine Harris
Charlaine Harris Schulz (born November 25, 1951) is an American author who specializes in mysteries. She is best known for her book series ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', which was adapted as the TV series ''True Blood''. The television show ...
, author of the popular
series of novels that inspired Ball's HBO series ''
True Blood
''True Blood'' is an American fantasy horror drama television series produced and created by Alan Ball. It is based on '' The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', a series of novels by Charlaine Harris. A reboot is currently in development.
The ser ...
''. Huston confided to Ball that he was thinking about pitching his then latest novel as a series, and the two worked on the pilot's development.
Speaking of the book, Ball said "It's not so much about the crime, it's about the personal story of the central character and his journey back to being fully connected with his life after some very traumatic things."
On shooting the pilot, Ball stated that he wanted to stay "away from the overlit, stylized noir for a more frantic, contemporary, naturalistic style."
Filming took place over 11 days in various parts of Los Angeles in June and July, 2010.
HBO announced on December 8, 2010 that it would not be taking ''All Signs of Death'' to series. The pilot remains unaired.
References
External links
* {{IMDb title, 1688060
HBO original programming
Television pilots not picked up as a series