Prime Video has found its two main villains to face off against Ryan Hurst’s Kratos in its God of War live-action series adaptation, with Mandy Patinkin (Criminal Minds) and Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (Severance) cast as All-Father Odin and God of Thunder Thor, respectively.\
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, the duo will take on the God Killer himself in Amazon’s take on PlayStation’s flagship hack-and-slash video game franchise of the same name, with their involvement signalling that the show is set to adapt both 2018’s God of War reboot and its 2022 sequel God of War Ragnarök into one combined narrative, as the two villains only showed up in the second game.
According to Amazon’s description of the two villains, Patinkin’s Odin is “not physically imposing or particularly god-like” but he is still “the most powerful Aesir god, a patriarch who leads with an iron fist, and an unrivalled seeker of knowledge” while being “paranoid, manipulative, and dangerous” while Ólafsson’s Thor is a “Mountain of a Man” whose “actions in a war fought long ago now haunt his waking hours”, making him a “shadow of his former self as he drowns himself in alcohol and tries not to think of the price he paid”.
God of War has already received a two-season order and hails from showrunner Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica). Director Frederick E.O. Toye (Shōgun, Fallout) has also signed on to helm its first two episodes.
Other previously announced cast members include Max Parker (Vampire Academy) as Heimdall, son of Odin, who can slow down time and read a person’s thoughts by looking into their eyes, alongside Teresa Palmer (I Am Number Four) as Thor’s wife Sif.
While no release window has been announced for Prime Video’s God of War, preproduction is underway in Vancouver, with the show’s synopsis reading, “God of War follows father and son Kratos and Atreus as they embark on a journey to spread the ashes of his wife and mother, Faye. Through their adventures, Kratos tries to teach his son to be a better god, while Atreus tries to teach his father how to be a better human.”
Kevin is a reformed PC Master Race gamer with a penchant for franchise “duds” like Darksiders III and Dead Space 3. He has made it his life-long mission to play every single major game release – lest his wallet dies trying.
