Kaos Cast, Creator, Director, Plot And More Details
The customs, iconography, and folklore of ancient civilizations have been mined time and again in contemporary pop culture, from Mary Shelley positioning "Frankenstein" as a modern re-telling of the Prometheus myth in 1818 to the hybrid Egyptian mythology of the "Stargate" franchise to the works of contemporary YA author Rick Riordan. It's a well that Netflix has reached into before, to great success — Norway's "Ragnarok," Brazil's "Invisible City," and the Greek-inspired American anime series "Blood of Zeus" being just a few examples of fresh takes on ancient myths.
In that sense, a big budget, live-action Netflix reimagining of Greek mythology has been a long time coming. And that's just what "Kaos" promises to be. An original creation of "The End of the F***ing World" mastermind Charlie Covell, "Kaos" was instantly met with a huge amount of buzz back when it was first announced in 2018. But where does the show stand now, multiple years later? Here's what we know.
When will Kaos be released?
Do we know when "Kaos" will be released? In short: No, we don't. Like every production that hit the COVID-19 speedbump, "Kaos" has had to navigate a complex set of obstacles on the way to a screen near you. The show was originally announced by Netflix on June 10, 2018, when Deadline and other outlets reported it had been given a straight-to-series order. Since then, we've learned the series will consist of eight episodes.
More than a year went by without any further details, until creator Charlie Covell sat down with the Radio Times in October 2019 to dish further on her latest brainchild. At the time, Covell said the development stage of production was going smoothly, and added, "We should be filming late June next year, and then it would be on screen 2021, I hope." Of course, then the pandemic happened, shutting down all film production in both the U.S. and the U.K. for the better part of a year. With that all said, future "Kaos" fans got a pleasant surprise in August 2022 when news hit that the series had finally begun filming in Spain. We're still not sure when "Kaos" will hit Netflix, but we know the project is moving forward.
What is the plot of Kaos?
Information on "Kaos" is still limited, but we do know a fair bit about the show's thematic aims. Its official Netflix page describes it thusly: "This genre-bending series puts a modern twist on Greek and Roman mythology, exploring themes of gender politics, power and life in the underworld." With this in mind, "Kaos" seems set to be an ambitious high-fantasy epic of the sort TV has become so adroit at creating.
Indeed, for anyone wondering just how ambitious "Kaos" is going to be, Charlie Covell described it to the Radio Times as "hopefully [having] a kind of 'Game of Thrones' scale." In terms of what that scale will actually be for, however, Covell has promised something more in line with her past work, adding, "Tonally it should [feel] 'End of the World-y,' in terms of its humor and its soundtrack and the look of it. One of the big steers for me was the Baz Luhrmann 'Romeo and Juliet' as a look."
The idea of a "Game of Thrones"-level blockbuster with "End of the F***ing World"-level bite is plenty enticing on its own, but Covell's brief description of the plot is even more intriguing: "We start with Orpheus and Eurydice," she remarked, "the gods are like a massive dysfunctional family[,] it should be funny and dark and sad." All told, "Kaos" seems to have the makings of another big winner for Netflix.
Who is starring in Kaos?
Plot details on "Kaos" are still rather vague. Star-crossed lovers Orpheus and Eurydice are the only specific figures from Greek mythology to have been nominally confirmed as characters. However, considering the show is dividing its time between the realms of "the Gods, the Earth, the Underworld," as Charlie Covell explained to the Radio Times, it's highly likely that Hades, king of the underworld in Greek myth, will figure somehow. The same can be said for the rest of the Olympians: Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Ares, Hephaestus, Aphrodite, Hermes, and either one or both of Hestia and Dionysus.
Who will portray these immortal icons? A whole host of pretty great actors. In May 2022, Aurora Perrineau was announced as lead character Riddy, and shortly thereafter in June, a ton of huge names joined the cast. Jeff Goldblum (who replaced Hugh Grant due to scheduling concerns) will appear as Zeus alongside Janet McAteer as Hera, David Thewlis as Hades, and Debi Mazar as Medusa, among others. In September 2023, news broke that Fady Elsayed had been cast as an unknown character. Billie Piper, who has worked with series director Georgi Banks-Davies on "I Hate Suzie," will also reportedly appear in a minor role.
Who's directing and producing Kaos?
So who's the creative team behind "Kaos?" Beyond Covell, the series is set to be directed by both Georgi Banks-Davies and Runyararo Mapfumo, the latter of whom has worked on Netflix's hit teen series "Sex Education." As for Banks-Davies, she recently helmed the cult HBO favorite "I Hate Suzie," and it seems like she's bringing that show's star, Billie Piper, along with her.
Sister, the series' production company, seems to be just getting started, but "Kaos" could be their next big hit. So far, they've worked on shows for HBO like "The Baby" and "Chernobyl" and the joint AMC and BBC production "This Is Going to Hurt," all of which have earned significant critical acclaim. This could mean big things for "Kaos."