Helldivers has found its new muscle man.
Alan Ritchson is in talks to star in Sony’s adaptation of its PlayStation video game property. The move comes after Jason Momoa exited the project in early June and would be the first time the Reacher star headlines a theatrical studio feature.
Justin Lin is directing the feature adaptation, which is set for release on Nov. 10, 2027.
Hailing from PlayStation Productions, the Helldivers project adapts the 2015 game and its sequel that have collectively sold more than 12 million units. The gaming property centers on Helldivers, a squad of elite shock troopers who must protect the fictional planet of Super Earth from attacking aliens.
Arrowhead Game Studios is the company behind the game.
The studio teased the adaptation during its CinemaCon presentation earlier this year after first announcing the project at CES in 2025. Momoa became attached to the project at the top of the year but by June was out the door. “Creative differences,” according to sources.
Sony had no comment on the Ritchson talks.
Helldivers
Arrowhead Game Studios
Dauberman, the scribe behind the hit It and Annabelle horror movies, wrote the initial script for the project, which then caught the attention of Lin, who is best known for his work on the Fast & Furious action movies. Chris Bremner, who penned Bad Boys for Life and Bad Boys: Ride or Die, wrote the most recent draft.
Hutch Parker, Asad Qizilbash and Lin are producing.
Ritchson’s star has been on the rise for the past several years since he snagged the titular role in Reacher, the action series that has become one of the top titles on Amazon’s Prime Video.
The actor has also been muscling his way into movies, appearing as part of the ensemble of the 2023 Fast & Furious movie Fast 10 and in 2024’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare from Lionsgate.
This year, he starred in the well-reviewed Motor City, Potsy Ponciroli’s gritty action movie distributed by IFC, and starred in War Machine, the sci-fi action that became Netflix’s most watched movie this year and nabbed a spot in the streamer’s all-time top 10. He currently has Runner, in which he co-stars with Owen Wilson, in theaters from Angel Studios.
He is repped by WME and Range Media.