It is one of Sony’s most beloved game franchises via Santa Monica Studios, and now God of War is coming to …
The post God of War: Everything We Know So Far About Amazon’s Adaptation appeared first on TV Fanatic.
It is one of Sony’s most beloved game franchises via Santa Monica Studios, and now God of War is coming to Prime Video. Amazon is on a roll, picking up major game franchises left and right. It’s hard to blame them.
With Fallout’s massive success, it’s a no-brainer to pick up popular franchises like Warhammer, Mass Effect, and God of War. Amazon acquired God of War back in March 2022. Of course, studios acquire the rights to adaptations all the time.
That doesn’t necessarily mean anything will come of it, at least not for a while. They do some of it purely for competition, effectively removing a popular story from the board.
In the worst case, they sell it later for more than the original buying price. But with Amazon churning out fantasy, sci-fi, and gaming content, the God of War brand is ripe with advantage.
The God of War universe spans ten games, so Amazon has a lot of content and lore from which to draw. However, it looks like the primary focus will be on the most recent two games in the series, which tell a complete story from beginning to end.
Related: Criminal: Everything We Know So Far About Amazon’s Crime Drama
It’s a tad early to discuss when the series will release since filming is still a future prospect. What we do know is that work on the script began in January of 2024, if not a little earlier.
Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby are writing the script, with Cory Barlog serving as executive producer. Fergus has a long list of highly successful scriptwriting credits, including First Snow, Children of Men, Iron Man (the 2008 version), and The Expanse series.
Hawk Otsby is Mark Fergus’s other half, contributing to all of Fergus’s scripts. Cory Barlog is a well-known name among God of War fans since he was the lead animator for the original God of War and directed the second.
He also directed the first “reboot” in 2018 and was heavily involved in God of War: Ragnarok.
This was the scariest, most wonderful thing I have ever done and I can honestly say it would never have been possible without the full-throated support of Sony and the tireless work of the incredible team at Santa Monica Studio
-Cory Balrog
The script covers the most recent two games in the series — the so-called reboots — even though they are a direct continuation of Kratos’ adventures. Years, possibly decades, separate the current storyline from Kratos’ original storyline.
For those just dipping their toes into God of War for the first time, the storyline is expansive. Most of Kratos’ (the main character throughout the series) exploits occur in ancient Sparta.
However, the two most recent games have Kratos somewhere in Scandinavia (Northlands). This change of venue also brought a massive story change to the table.
A far more in-depth, nuanced, and personal Kratos emerges from the rage-filled, singular focus of his younger days, and this really opens up the playbook for the showrunners.
God of War will only have one home, and that is Amazon. Development has been a long and convoluted ride, with nearly two decades of back-and-forth, up-and-down stages.
Development hell is nothing new for some of these larger franchises, and there is a lot of ground to cover with the story.
Amazon is investing heavily in game franchises, and the success of Fallout probably means a more concerted effort is on the horizon. Plus, there’s the competitive nature of the business.
Related: The Witcher Season 4: Everything We Know So Far
Netflix is busy with The Witcher, Bioshock, Assassin’s Creed, Beyond Good and Evil, and Horizon. Max has The Last of Us. Peacock has Twisted Metal. PUBG, Metal Gear Solid, Ghost of Tsushima, Sifu, Mortal Kombat 2, Portal, Death Stranding, Firewatch, and Minecraft are on the way as well.
Filling Kratos’ shoes will not be an easy feat. For those familiar with The Witcher series, the backlash against the casting of Liam Hemsworth as Geralt was significant.
Kratos is such a specific character that only a few actors will make sense to those familiar with the game.
Thus far, Amazon has not found that person. It’s just one of those things that Amazon cannot afford to get wrong. Christopher Judge voices the character and is definitely in the running.
Dwayne Johnson is a name floating around out there as well, though nothing has come of it.
Other names on the list include Jason Mamoa, Chris Hemsworth (uh…no, please), Dominic Purcell, Tom Hardy, Idris Elba, Dave Bautista (voice and mannerisms are way off), and Brandon White.
Brandon White is the only actor to physically play Kratos, with Christopher Judge voicing him. A live-action trailer for God of War: Ascension featured White in the titular character’s role. Granted, this was much earlier in Kratos’ life.
There are no casting rumors for any of the other characters, at least not yet. Some interesting theories are floating around the web, but nothing concrete.
As mentioned above, Mark Fergus and Hawk Otsby are penning the script, with Cory Barlog (probably the only person on the planet with the most experience with God of War) filling the executive producer role.
Rafe Judkins is currently in the director’s chair for those familiar with Amazon’s Wheel of Time series. Judkins has plenty of experience working with Sony as a writer with Playstation Productions.
Related: The Last of Us Season 2 Adds Four Cast Members. Who Are They Playing?
Santa Monica Studios is also sending over some of its own talent, including Yumi Yang and Jeff Ketcham as executive producers with Barlog.
Roy Lee, Carter Swan, and Asad Qizilbash also joined Balrog in the executive producer role. It all adds up to an extensive resume, with well-known franchises in the mix, especially video game adaptations such as The Last of Us and Uncharted.
Kratos is essentially an anti-hero. As a Spartan warrior, the Greek god Ares tricked him into murdering his wife and child.
His infamous pale complexion is the result of the village oracle, forever marking him by covering his body in the ashes of his dead wife and child.
As a result of Ares’ trick, Kratos renounces him and goes to war against him. While the plot is more sophisticated than what’s written here, Kratos’ acts escalate into an all-out war against the Greek gods, eventually ending in their deaths, laying waste to the surrounding lands as a consequence.
Kratos’ story picks up an unspecified number of years later in the Northlands. He remarried, and his wife passed away, leaving him to care for and raise his son, Atreus. This is where Amazon chose to focus.
While that choice is the right one, it also means Kratos will arrive on the scene with a lot of backstory to cover.
The 2018 and 2022 God of War games, which are the focus of the upcoming series, are two parts of a single story about the father-son dynamic.
The catalyst is the death of Atreus’ mother, and the inciting event involves a stranger arriving at Kratos’ and Atreus’ door as the two are still in mourning, preparing for a journey to spread her ashes.
Kratos and Atreus become embroiled in the affairs of the Nordic gods at a moment when Kratos is trying to learn how to be a father despite his horrific past — a past abundant with violence, the death of his daughter, and mindless vengeance.
It’s an epic tale that takes a story as old as time itself and imbues it with fascinating characters steeped in Greek and Norse lore.
The release date of God of War is known only to Amazon, at least right now. Besides, the showrunners at Amazon probably only have a loose idea themselves.
Related: The Penguin: Cast, Plot, Trailer, Release Date and Everything We Know So Far
We don’t know for sure if the script is completely written, needs rewrites, or will fill in as filming kicks off. According to Vernon Sanders, Amazon Studios’ Head of Television,
We do incredibly well with adaptations, from Invincible to The Boys . I mean, we just covered so many of them, right? And so we know that there’s such a passionate fan base for God of War . But the thing that we’re always looking for is whether there is a real emotional core, if there’s a real narrative story, and I think that’s part of what makes God of War so special.
Sticking close to the source material will help expedite the script. It’s more a matter of converting the video game to live.
As for now, we’re still waiting on the pilot order. Considering the level of expertise behind the script, God of War will likely get the green light from Amazon any day.
There is no information on the number of episodes Season 1 will have. Judging by The Boys, Fallout, and other popular series on Prime, eight is the magic number.
It’s likely that God of War will have eight episodes, but there’s always a chance it will have more or less, depending on budget, scheduling, etc.
Are you a fan of the God of War franchise? Will this series be on your must-watch list? Let us know in the comments, along with the direction you would like to see Kratos and Atreus take!
The post God of War: Everything We Know So Far About Amazon’s Adaptation appeared first on TV Fanatic.
