The casting swap follows Ryan Hurst’s injury on set earlier this year.
In a surprising twist of fate, Dave Bautista will be taking on the starring role of Kratos in the Prime Video adaptation of God of War. The actor struck many fans as a good match for this splashy project, which already has a two-season order and the renowned Ronald D. Moore attached as showrunner, writer and executive producer.
This dream casting came about in a pretty unfortunate way. The Kratos role had initially been given to Ryan Hurst, who has also appeared in Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead. Things with the show progressed far enough for a teaser first look of Hurst as Kratos and Callum Vinson as Atreus to make the rounds. However, Hurst reportedly suffered an injury on set while performing a stunt, and it was severe enough to require surgery that would take the actor out of commission for several months. Last month, the production team made the call to recast following Hurst’s injury rather than delay production until next year. Bautista was rumored to be the second choice, and that speculation is now official.
It’s a tough situation for Hurst, who will hopefully have a speedy and successful recovery. But its hard to imagine Bautista won’t be able to grunt “Boy” with the perfect amount of gravitas and gravel that the character demands.