Dave Bautista, widely recognized for his portrayal of Drax the Destroyer in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy films, is reportedly in negotiations with Amazon to play Kratos in the upcoming God of War live-action series. This development follows an injury sustained by actor Ryan Hurst, who had been cast in the role.
Hurst reportedly tore a bicep muscle during filming, an injury that is expected to keep him from resuming his role for four to six months. Amazon has opted to recast Kratos as a result of this recovery period. Bautista already has an established working relationship with Amazon, having appeared in their films The Wrecking Crew and My Spy, with upcoming projects including Road House 2 and Highlander also produced by the company.
Filming on the God of War series had apparently completed four episodes before Hurst's injury. Production is now slated to resume in October. This is not the first injury to affect an Amazon game adaptation this year; Sophie Turner also suffered an injury during the shooting of the Tomb Raider live-action series, although filming for that production has since restarted.
In related casting news for the God of War show, casting calls have reportedly been issued for actors aged 14 to 17, suggesting a focus on a teenage version of Atreus and the introduction of Thor's daughter, Thrud. Callum Vinson, a 12-year-old actor, has already been cast as Atreus. This new casting call is speculated to be for a potential second season, aligning with events from the Ragnarok video game.
Meanwhile, the God of War video game series is set to expand in February with the release of Laufey, a game focusing on the titular character and running parallel to the events of the 2018 God of War game.