James Hollingshead, Men’s Open Olympia Competitor, cosplayed as Kratos from the “God of War” video game at Comic Con

James Hollingshead, an IFBB Pro, first caught people’s attention with his impressive size and strength in the IFBB Pro League as a Men’.Hollingshead cosplayed as Kratos from the action/fantasy video game series God of War at the 2022 MCM London Comic Con in a recent Instagram post. The event took place this past Oct. 28-30 at the ExCel Exhibition Entertainment.

The main character of the God of War series is Kratos, a half-god warrior. He was first introduced to gamers as he prepared for battle against the Greek god of war, Aries, to take revenge on behalf of his deceased family. Kratos is well-known for his full beard, ghostly pale skin, and the red stripe that adorns the left side of his head, shoulder, and torso.

Kratos made an appearance at the 2022 MCM London Comic Con. Of course, it wasn’t the real Kratos, but Mr. Olympia competitor James Hollingshead cosplaying as Kratos. Check out the video below from his YouTube channel:

James Hollingshead cosplays Kratos from ‘God of War’ at Comic-Con

The video begins with a time-lapse of Hollingshead getting made up by a team of artists, tasked with making the IFBB pro look like the embodiment of the god of war. Hollingshead is featured in a montage cosplaying and taking pictures with other cosplayers and spectators at Comic-Con. His massive lats, shoulders, chest, and sheer muscle density make him stand out among the crowd.

Hollingshead has been with Kratos since his first trip to Comic Con in May 2022 in anticipation of the worldwide release of God of War: Ragnarök on Nov. 9, 2022. The game was given a perfect score of 10 out of 10 by IGN.

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Hollingshead at the Olympia

Hollingshead made news when he won his first Pro at the 2020 Europa Pro Championships, which got him an invite to the 2020 Olympia. A month later, he secured his spot in the 2021 Olympia with a powerful victory at the 2020 British Grand Prix. James decided not to compete in the 2020 Olympia with two qualifications in hand.

Hollingshead stated that his goal was to improve his physique to make an impactful debut. This would require him winning a Pro show in order to receive an invite to the Olympia, as opposed to qualifying via multiple top-rank finishes, which is how the Olympia Qualification system works.

James implied that he might retire from professional competition in January. Even though retirement was on his mind, he wasn’t rushing into any decisions. He posted an update that showed he had gained back more of the muscle mass he lost.