As Prime Video's "God of War" live-action series continues its development, with reports of a production restart on the horizon, Christopher Judge, the acclaimed voice actor behind Kratos in the original video game, recently voiced strong dissatisfaction at a FanExpo panel. Judge criticized game adaptations for failing to utilize their original creative teams, specifically calling out the "God of War" series for not involving its game writers.
Judge stated, "My problem with all these game adaptations is that you have an existing, successful IP, and the first thing you do is not hire anyone associated with it."
"Take 'The Last of Us'—and let me say, I love Pedro Pascal—but are they really better than the original game cast? I saw a stage reading they did, and it was incredible. I just don't understand why you wouldn't just use those actors, those writers, especially when you're doing episodes that are almost shot-for-shot remakes of the game."
He further challenged Amazon's approach to "God of War," asking, "When Amazon announced the 'God of War' TV series and didn't hire any of the 'God of War' game writers... what are you thinking? These people have been immersed in this world for 20 years, and now someone else knows it better than them?"
While Cory Barlog, a long-time contributor to the "God of War" franchise, is credited as an executive producer, the extent of his actual involvement remains unclear. The series recently paused production after Ryan Hurst sustained an injury during stunt filming, leading the crew to reportedly seek a new actor for Kratos, with Dave Bautista said to be in negotiations for the role.