'God of War': Amazon Show Promises To Be Faithful To Lore

Amazon announced last week that the company was adapting the popular and award-winning "God of War" franchise into a streaming series, and the tech giant has promised to deliver a faithful adaptation.

Deadline reported earlier this year that Prime Video was in the middle of negotiations for the live-action TV rights to "God of War." It was reported that "The Expanse" creators Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, as well as "The Wheel of Time" showrunner Rafe Judkins, would most likely lead the helm for the "God of War" series. Sony and Playstation would also have input when it came to creative decisions. Those rumors turned out to be true.

Adaptations of video games into movies or TV shows is nothing new, and a few of them in recent years have garnered attention -- some of it negative, such as Netflix's "Resident Evil" and Paramount+'s "Halo" after online fans criticized the shows for straying from the original source material. Amazon is promising that it won't happen with "God of War" and that the show will remain faithful to the story of Kratos and his travels.

Amazon Studios' Head of TV Production Vernon Sanders called "'God of War" a "compelling, character-driven franchise that we believe will captivate our global customers as much with its expansive and immersive worlds as its rich storytelling. We are honored to share in the adventure of exploring the 'God of War' mythology in such a momentous way with Sony Pictures Television, PlayStation Productions, and Santa Monica Studio."

Sanders also spoke to Collider about the upcoming series and although the conversation started about Prime Video's successful "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power" offshoot, it veered to how he felt that Amazon does "incredibly well" when it comes to adaptations. He mentioned "Invincible" and "The Boys" as examples before he got to the upcoming "God of War" series.

"We know that there's such a passionate fan base for 'God of War'," Sanders explained to Collider. "But the thing that we're always looking for is whether there is a real emotional core, if there's a real narrative story, and I think [that's] part of what makes 'God of War' so special."

Sanders emphasized the importance of being creative with the source material while remaining true to it, noting that the success of adaptations relied on meeting the expectations of fans. There's a built-in fan base for such games, and with that comes high hopes and the possibility of failure.

"So what [showrunners] Rafe Judkins and Mark Fergus and [writer] Hawk Ostby have come up with for the first season, and for the series, I think, is both incredibly true to the source material, and also compelling on its own," said Sanders. "So we think it's going to be huge."

"God of War" isn't the only adaptation heading to Amazon; Henry Cavill's "Warhammer 40,000" is also lined up.