Ryan Hurst was announced to play Kratos in Amazon’s God Of War TV show earlier this year, but he’s already set to be replaced after tearing a bicep.
While Kratos’ wife Faye will be taking the lead on the next God Of War video game, gaming’s most famous angry dad is still going to be front and centre as far as the overall franchise goes.
Aside from all three original God Of War games getting remakes, the 2016 God Of War is being adapted into an Amazon TV show, starring Ryan Hurst (who played Thor in God Of War Ragnarōk) as Kratos himself.
Or at least it was starring Hurst, as he’s now been forced to step down from the role due to an on-set injury, prompting a search for a replacement.
According to TMZ, Hurst (who also appears in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey) tore a bicep while performing a stunt in late June, which put production on hold while he undergoes surgery.
The hope was that he would recover by mid-August, but Hurst’s recovery could take as long as a year, meaning he wouldn’t be able to return until midway through 2027.
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A follow-up report by Deadline states that despite four episodes already being fully completed, it’s been decided to find a new actor to take over as Kratos and reshoot all of Hurst’s scenes.
The report adds that the plan is still to film two seasons of the show back-to-back, though there remains no targeted release window nor any real footage beyond one promo photo depicting Hurst as Kratos and child actor Callum Vinson as Kratos’ son Atreus – a photo that was roundly mocked for looking silly.
The presence of Vinson likely played a part in the decision to recast Hurst. Had they waited for Hurst to recover until he was fit to film again, Atreus would then be too old. Either way, it’s a shame that Hurst’s portrayal of the character won’t now be in the show.
As for who could be called in to replace Hurst, nothing official’s been shared yet, but some common suggestions from before Hurst’s confirmation included Dave Bautista, Dominic Purcell, and Chris Hemsworth; the last of which would be amusing considering he’s another Thor actor.
Despite the lack of a release date, the show is presumed to be aiming to start airing in 2027, which would make sense as that’s when God Of War Laufey is expected to launch as well.
It’d be a smart use of cross-promotion, especially since the events of God Of War Laufey appear to be taking place concurrently to Kratos and Atreus’ own journey.
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