God Of War Prime Video Series Casts A Hollywood Legend As Odin (And He's Perfect)

Casting is really coming along for Prime Video's upcoming "God of War" TV series. The project, which hails from writer, showrunner, and executive producer Ronald D. Moore, has not only found a pretty perfect Kratos that even gamers are happy with in actor Ryan Hurst, but it's also cast a great Thor in "Severance" star Ólafur Darri Ólafsson. (Funny enough, Hurst actually voiced Thor in the video game that serves as the source material, but he'll make a killer Greek god of strength too.) Now, Deadline reports that "The Princess Bride" and "Homeland" star Mandy Patinkin will be playing one of Norse mythology's most dangerous antagonists: Odin, the god of war. 

While the main villain and Greek god of war from the original "God of War" trilogy of games, Ares, is a hulking ripped guy with flaming hair, Odin from 2018's "God of War" and its follow-up is a bit sneakier in his strength. Depicted as a bald old man with a gray beard and one eye, he's nonetheless a master manipulator and tactician, like a cyclopean Tywin Lannister. If anyone can project the power and age of Odin while looking fairly unimposing, it's going to be Patinkin.

Mandy Patinkin has been an always reliable star of film, stage, and the small screen, with turns in everything from "Dick Tracy" to "Criminal Minds." He's great at playing all kinds of roles and has a depth to him that's hard to quantify, and he'll undoubtedly excel as Odin the All-father, one of the oldest and most powerful gods of the Norse pantheon. In "God of War," Odin is paranoid and worried about the Ragnarök, which is an apocalyptic event that will be kicked off by the death of the god Baldur and will signal the end of life for all of the gods. (The game's sequel, "God of War Ragnarök," depicts the aftermath of this cataclysmic event.) While it might seem like wanting to stop the end of the world is a good thing, Odin's not exactly doing it for altruistic reasons since he'll die too. 

The Norse "God of War" games are excellent, and hopefully, the small screen adaptation will follow suit. Just don't expect Patinkin to say "My name is Odin Borsson, you started Ragnarök, prepare to die."