Prime Video's God Of War Series Casts A Severance Star As Thor

Barely two weeks after Prime Video's upcoming "God of War" television series found its Kratos in Ryan Hurst, who famously voiced a very different character in the original video games, the show has now cast one of its biggest villains. Oh, and he's bound to be a recognizable one to Apple TV+ subscribers. The Prime Video adaptation is wasting no time building out a formidable roster of talent and, this time, fans are likely to be pleased with the results once again.

Deadline reports that Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, who memorably portrayed the violent and physically imposing Mr. Drummond in season 2 of "Severance," has joined the cast to play Thor. This version of the God of Thunder is a marked difference from his Marvel Cinematic Universe counterpart, however. Half giant and half man, Thor first appeared as a cameo in the 2018 "God of War" game before making his proper debut in "God of War Ragnarök." Coming from an incredibly brutal upbringing, his  antagonistic role culminated in a major boss battle with main protagonist Kratos. According to Prime Video's official description of the character:

The God of Thunder is 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.

Whatever hot takes fans may have about a "God of War" streaming adaptation, nobody can accuse its creative team of lacking imagination and creativity. After first flipping the fandom on their heads by casting original Thor voice actor Ryan Hurst as its new Kratos, showrunner Ronald D. Moore has done it again by branching out and scooping up "Severance" scene-stealer Ólafur Darri Ólafsson as his live-action Thor.

Incredibly enough, however, it turns out certain fans saw the vision months ahead of time. One overlooked social media post on the Fancast subreddit from almost a full year ago basically nailed it right on the head, submitting an image comparing Ólafsson's physicality to that of Thor in "God of War Ragnarök." The physical resemblance is uncanny, as most fancasts tend to be, but it certainly helps that the actor proved his chops throughout "Severance" and his previous credits as well. This includes season 1 of "True Detective," the 2014 film "A Walk Among the Tombstones," the Apple TV series "Your Friends & Neighbors," and plenty more.

Ólafsson joins a cast already made up of Hurst, Max Parker as Heimdall, Teresa Palmer as Sif, and more certainly to be announced in the weeks and months ahead. "God of War" has already been granted a two-season order, with Moore handling showrunner duties and Frederick E.O. Toye ("The Boys," "Shōgun," and "Fallout") set to direct the first two episodes. The official logline is as follows:

In "God of War," the live action series, his story will closely follow the path of the last two games as he deals with something new: his 10 year old son Atreus. This father and son dynamic began a whole new chapter in the legendary series and will be the heartbeat of the new show.