Mandy Patinkin (
"Homeland",
"The Princess Bride") and
Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (
"Severance",
"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty") have joined the cast of Amazon's upcoming live-action series
"God of War", based on the PlayStation video game franchise. The show will be written, showrun and executive produced by
Ronald D. Moore (
"Outlander",
"For All Mankind"), and has been given a two-season order.
Frederick E.O. Toye (
"Shōgun",
"The Boys") has signed on to direct the first two episodes.
Patinkin has been cast as Odin, the most powerful Aesir god, a patriarch who leads with an iron fist and an unrivaled seeker of knowledge. When it comes to seeking out prophecy, Odin is paranoid, manipulative and dangerous— he will do anything to try and prevent Ragnarök, the Norse end of days. He serves as a formidable antagonist to Kratos (
Ryan Hurst).
Ólafsson has signed on to star as Thor, the God of Thunder, a mountain of a man who has weathered many a battle in his time, but whose actions in a war fought long ago now haunt his waking hours. Once the loyal soldier of Asgard and his father’s right-hand man, Thor is now but a shadow of his former self as he drowns himself in alcohol and tries not to think of the price he paid. Keeping his wife and children at arm’s length has only deepened his isolation, but the power (and danger) of the God of Thunder is still there just beneath the surface.
The cast also includes
Teresa Palmer as Phoebe/Sif, Thor's wife and the goddess of family, and
Max Parker as Heimdall, the Watchman of Asgard, and one of Odin's sons.
Co-produced by Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studio,
"God of War" follows father and son, Kratos and 10-year-old Atreus, as they embark on a journey to spread the ashes of their wife and mother, Faye. Through their adventures, Kratos tries to teach his son to be a better god, while Atreus tries to teach his father how to be a better human.
Executive producers also include
Maril Davis, Cory Barlog, Naren Shankar, Matthew Graham, Asad Qizilbash, Jeff Ketcham, Hermen Hulst, Roy Lee and
Brad Van Arragon.
Joe Menosky, Marc Bernardin, Tania Lotia and
Ben McGinnis co-executive produce.
