EXCLUSIVE: PlayStation’s flagship action-adventure franchise God of War is heading to television. Prime Video is in negotiations for a live-action TV series based on the hugely popular ancient mythology-themed game, sources said.
I hear the series adaptation comes from The Expanse creators/executive producers Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby and The Wheel of Time executive producer/showrunner Rafe Judkins as well as Sony Pictures Television and PlayStation Productions, which collaborate on all TV series based on PlayStation games. Reps for Sony and Amazon Studios, which likely will co-produce, had no comment.
This would mark the latest big deal for a TV series based on a popular video game title in a red-hot streaming marketplace for gaming IP. Peacock just landed another SPT/PlayStation property, Twisted Metal, with a series order and Anthony Mackie starring. HBO has coming up the high-profile PlayStation game-based series The Last of Us, starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. Netflix has a Resident Evil TV series in the works, while Paramount+ is about to debut Halo.
Amazon Studios has been particularly aggressive in the arena. It has Killer Films’ upcoming TV series Fallout, starring Walton Goggins; it is developing a Mass Effect series adaptation; and just closed a first-look deal with dj2 Entertainment to develop TV series based on gaming IP.
The God of War franchise from Sony’s Santa Monica Studio spans a total of seven games across four PlayStation consoles. The action game series launched in 2005 on the PlayStation 2, with the first God of War. At the center is ex-Spartan warrior Kratos and his perilous journey to exact revenge on the Ares, the Greek God of War, after killing his loved ones under the deity’s influence. After becoming the ruthless God of War himself, Kratos finds himself constantly looking for a chance to change his fate.
Following several titles on various PlayStation consoles including the PS3 and the handheld PSP, Santa Monica Studio brought new life to the franchise with the 2018 game on the PlayStation 4. In it, Kratos comes to the Norse wilds where he gets a second chance at fatherhood with his son Atreus. The installment a slew of honors at the 2018 Game Awards, including Game of the Year.
An eighth God of War installment, God of War: Ragnorok, is in the works for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 and is set to drop this year.
Fergus and Ostby shared an Oscar nomination for co-writing Children of Men and also co-wrote the script for Iron Man, which teed off the box-office reign of Marvel Studios. Judkins also has Marvel ties; he was a writer-producer on ABC’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Alexandra Del Rosario contributed to this report.