Did ‘Death Stranding’s’ Hideo Kojima Cast Favorite Actor Mads Mikkelsen To Play Alongside Norman Reedus?

While Hideo Kojima is being secretive about the specifics of his upcoming video game, titled “Death Stranding,” the renowned Japanese video game director and creator could not just keep everything concealed from his fans and the fans of his well-received creations. Amid the growing anticipation for the mysterious title, certain hints have surfaced that appear to suggest that the “Hannibal” alum Mads Mikkelsen has been cast to be part of the game’s narrative.

According to Crave, though both Mikkelsen and Kojima have yet to confirm this speculation, there is already enough proof that the Danish actor is taking part in the game. For example, Kojima tweeted over the weekend a picture that appears to show the behind-the-scenes photography of the game. In the photo, a silhouette of a man wearing a red hooded jacket could be seen. However, because only the back profile of the man is visible in the snap, it was initially hard to tell who he is.

Fortunately, a fan of the “Hannibal” star shared a picture with the actor on Instagram on the same day. What’s very noticeable in the snap is that Mikkelsen looks like he is wearing the same hooded jacket worn by the mystery man in the photograph shared by Kojima earlier. Adding credence to the rumor, the person who shared the photo featuring Mikkelsen got word from the actor that he was in London to work on a video game.

Finally, Crave pointed out that this rumor is very likely to be true because Kojima has said it himself that his favorite actor is no other than Mikkelsen, as per the game designer’s 2015 post on Twitter.

If Mikkelsen has indeed been cast for the upcoming video game, then he is bound to work with “The Walking Dead” actor Norman Reedus, who was already featured in the game’s teaser trailer at E3 2016.

In the teaser trailer, Reedus could be seen overcome with grief as he holds a baby to his chest. It does not take long until Reedus’ character notices that the baby has disappeared and his hands are stained with a blank, ink-like substance. As per Engadget, the character appears to have been cursed with the capacity to bring death to anyone and anything based on the trailer.

It would not be surprising if he is indeed jinxed to cause the death of people around him because Kojima took the inspiration behind the game from a mysterious short novel of Japanese author Kobo Abe.

Speaking with Digital Spy at E3, Kojima revealed that the inspiration behind “Death Stranding” is Abe’s novel “Rope,” which puts emphasis on how a rope can be used to keep bad things away and tie only good things close to a person.

Even with this revelation, however, the premise of “Death Stranding” still remains ambiguous. What is only certain for now is the fact that Kojima is developing the video game exclusively for PS4 and PC.