Reacher star Alan Ritchson has been confirmed to play one of the titular Helldivers in the hit game’s film adaptation, which is now set to release in 2028.
As told by Sony Pictures in a September 30 press release, Helldivers’ release date has been shifted from November 10, 2027 to June 9, 2028.
Justin Lin, best known for helming several of the Fast & Furious movies, is still set to direct, with Hutch Parker, PlayStation Productions’ Asad Qizilbash, and Justin Lin’s Perfect Storm Entertainment producing the film.
As described by Sony Pictures, Helldivers’ story centers on an “elite unit of soldiers — known as Helldivers — who must battle alien creatures threatening to destroy the fictional planet of Super Earth.” Ritchson will star as “one of the Helldivers,” though it remains to be seen if he is the movie’s main character or not.
Ritchson was already rumored to be involved in the Helldivers adaptation; a report from Deadline earlier this month stated the six-foot-three action hero was in talks to star. Now that this has been confirmed, we can’t think of anyone better to join the Helldivers’ ranks and help spread sweet, sweet Democracy through the galaxy, especially given his standout performance in Prime Video’s Reacher.
The movie could have looked drastically different, and it almost did; Jason Momoa (Game of Thrones, Supergirl) was initially slated to star in Helldivers, but left the project sometime this summer for unknown reasons.
First announced in January 2025, the Helldivers movie was received with mixed reactions from fans, especially after they learned that director Justin Lin is not a gamer. The Hollywood Reporter described this as a “strength” for Lin, saying he “leaned into it” when pitching his idea for the project.
Unsurprisingly, this caused an uproar among players… but the CEO of Arrowhead, the developer of Helldivers 2, assured them that he “trusts” Lin with the IP.
“We are not Hollywood people, and we don’t know what it takes to make a movie. And therefore we don’t, and shouldn’t, have final say,” he said, urging fans to “let him work his magic.”
We’re hopeful that Lin’s Helldivers will be just as fantastic of a love letter to the game as Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil was to Capcom’s flagship horror series. It’s a good time for video game adaptations overall, and more are on the horizon, with Legendary’s Street Fighter set to hit theaters on October 16.
Image Credit: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.
