Actor Ryan Hurst suffered a bicep tear and will be replaced
Deadline reports that Amazon Prime Video’s God of War TV show has suffered a major setback: The role of Kratos will be recast after lead actor Ryan Hurst suffered a serious injury during shooting.
Hurst tore a bicep filming a stunt for the show in late June, according to Deadline. At that point, he had already been shooting the part in Vancouver for months; the first production still from the shoot was shared back in February. Sources said four episodes had been fully completed.
Production was paused immediately after the incident. Hurst underwent surgery and is now in recovery. But recovery from a serious bicep tear can take six months, and up to a year to return to full strength — a big problem for an intensely physical role. Waiting for Hurst’s recovery would have involved shutting the production down until sometime in 2027.
It seems this was longer than production companies Sony and Amazon could stomach, and it’s been decided to recast Kratos, with the aim of restarting production in October. If the producers already have an actor in mind to replace Hurst, Deadline’s report doesn’t identify them. The four episodes currently in the can will mostly need to be reshot.
Hurst’s casting as Kratos was announced in January. He’s had roles in Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead, but God of War fans know him best as Thor in the 2022 game God of War Ragnarök. He also has a part in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, which opens this weekend: Hurst plays Mentor, the original mentor, a guide to Tom Holland’s Telemachus.