HBO is in discussions with Neil Gaiman on turning his novel AMERICAN GODS into a TV series, reports Deadline.com. Playtone heads Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman are behind the project. Gaiman and Oscar-winning cinematographer Robert Richardson plan on writing the pilot.

An ex-con is thrust into the battle between old gods and the rising new deities. The old gods are losing power because people have stopped believing in them. The new gods have grown from human's obsession with media, celebrity, technology and drugs. An old god works as a conman to build up his forces.