Hideo Kojima Says He Cast His Solid Snake-alike for Death Stranding 2 To Try and Surpass Mads Mikkelsen

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach’s latest trailer unveiled a wealth of new information, most notably the casting of Luca Marinelli as Neil, a character whose striking resemblance to Solid Snake has generated significant buzz. The casting process itself was particularly meticulous, as director Hideo Kojima aimed to find an actor who could surpass the impact of Mads Mikkelsen's performance as Cliff in the first Death Stranding.

Kojima's journey to casting Marinelli began with They Call Me Jeeg. Further correspondence arose through the Japanese distribution of Martin Eden. Marinelli proactively reached out to Kojima, expressing his fandom and admiration. The email, according to Kojima, simply stated: "I grew up with Metal Gear. I am a big fan of yours. I am very honored that you saw the film I starred in. I wanted to tell you this directly."

Following Marinelli's performance in The Old Guard, Kojima extended an offer. Discussions concluded after Marinelli completed filming The Eight Mountains. Marinelli, upon learning Kojima was also seeking an actress for the role of Lucy, introduced his wife, Alissa Jung, to the director.

Kojima noted, "We did their scan and performance capture during the height of the pandemic, but their on-set performance was excellent. You can see that in the digitized results from even the small bits of the trailer. I can only thank Luca and Alissa for agreeing to perform when we didn't even have a script yet."

Neil's reveal in the trailer has been a highlight, culminating in a scene where he dons a bandanna reminiscent of Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid, subsequently leading a squad of soldiers in a manner echoing Cliff from the first Death Stranding.

This casting choice has clearly been on Kojima's mind for a while. As early as 2020, Kojima remarked on Marinelli's potential, stating: "I think if he donned a bandanna, he'd be a spitting image of Solid Snake!"

While Neil is unlikely to be a multiversal Snake, the visual similarities undeniably evoke Kojima's Metal Gear legacy. For a deeper dive, check out IGN's article: Who Is Kojima’s New ‘Solid Snake’ and Why Death Stranding 2 Looks Like the Closest We’ll Ever Get to Another Metal Gear Solid.

Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is slated for release on June 26, 2025, exclusively on PlayStation 5.

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Death Stranding 2 Cast

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