Rufus Sewell Joins Brett Ratner’s ‘Hercules: The Thracian Wars’

Rufus Sewell will be joining Dwayne Johnson in the upcoming Hercules film.

Sewell has been cast as Autolycus who, in Greek mythology, was a son of Hermes and Chione (or Philonis, depending on who’s telling the story). Autolycus eventually becomes the father of Polymede, who is the mother of Jason the Argonaut. Autolycus is also the grandfather of Odysseus, and goes on to teach wrestling to Hercules.

Whether Sewell’s character will play the same role as he does in mythology is unclear and perhaps unlikely. Ratner’s version of Hercules will be more realistic, removing the gods and magic from the myth. Instead, Hercules (Johnson) renounces his origins and bonds with a group of men and women who share his love of fighting. He and his comrades become “mercenaries for hire,” who are hired by the King of Thrace to train his army to become the greatest of all time.

Fans of the ’90s series Hercules and its spin-off Xena: Warrior Princess will most likely remember Autolycus as portrayed byBruce Campbell almost two decades ago. Campbell’s Autolycus was a self-proclaimed “King of Thieves” who befriends Hercules and Xena, although they are often suspicious of him.

The film is written by Ryan Condal and Evan Spiliotopoulos and produced by Ratner, Barry Levine, and Beau Flynn. Headhunters star Askil Hennie has been cast as Tydeus, and Degrassi star Cassie Steele is rumored to play Aphrodite.

Hercules: The Thracian Wars is set to hit theaters July 25, 2014. It was originally scheduled for August 8, but moving the release up by two weeks means that the film has that weekend to itself for the time being. However, with X-Men: Days of Future Past coming out the week before, Hercules may still be facing a bit of competition.

Are you excited for Hercules: The Thracian Wars? What do you think of Rufus Sewell being cast as Autolycus?