While video games are predominantly an interactive medium, the form has given us countless characters who have become generalized pop culture icons. The Mario Brothers, Zelda and Link, Master Chief, and many more have transcended their source material and become recognizable symbols for gaming at large. And now that we’ve entered a new age of mainstream video game adaptations, several of those protagonists have become coveted roles — given the success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie and A Minecraft Movie, plenty of actors would jump at the chance to voice Crash Bandicoot or play Solid Snake in live-action.
Another video game icon is set to make his on-screen debut soon: Kratos, the main character of the decades-spanning God of War franchise. After a film adaptation of the Greek-era games languished in development hell for years, Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, and Amazon MGM Studios have united to bring the Norse-era of God of War to television. Sons of Anarchy and The Odyssey alum Ryan Hurst was initially supposed to play the character, but after sustaining an injury during filming, the production has been forced to replace him — and his understudy might be someone who’s already made a pop culture icon out of a C-list character.
