God of War creator calls Amazon's first reveal 'so bad in so many ways' but keeps faith in showrunner

David Jaffe, creator of the original God of War, has gone on record to slam the first promotional image from Amazon Prime Video's upcoming live-action series. In a YouTube video posted on February 28, 2026, Jaffe called the debut photo of Kratos and Atreus "terrible" and "so bad in so many ways." The image, showing Ryan Hurst and Callum Vinson as Kratos and Atreus respectively, drew a mostly warm reaction from fans – but Jaffe isn't buying it.

His main issue isn't the casting itself, but the specific image Amazon chose to introduce the characters to the world. "If you're going to reveal, to most people, a brand new character that you hope is going to carry your series, for the first time, and they've never really seen this before, and this is the way you introduce them?" Jaffe said in the video.

He went after Hurst's pose and expression in particular, saying the actor looks like he's "s***ing in the woods" and "just looks stupid." Part of the fanbase has already shared similar doubts about Hurst's look – his beard especially – and Jaffe's comments haven't done much to quiet that conversation.

Despite tearing into the reveal, Jaffe is still optimistic about the show itself. He praised showrunner Ronald D. Moore, calling him "a juggernaut of a talented fellow" and stating, "I have absolutely no doubt it is going to be a good show." Moore's résumé backs that up – he's worked on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, HBO's Carnivale, Battlestar Galactica, Outlander, and For All Mankind.

The series is set to adapt the events of God of War (2018), and presumably God of War Ragnarök as well.