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Netflix’s KAOS (Season 1, released August 2024) puts Greek mythological figures into a present-day world. The divine family is led by Zeus, Hera, Hades, Persephone, Poseidon, Prometheus and Dionysus. The mortal and heroic cast includes Riddy (the show’s Eurydice), her husband Orpheus, Caeneus, Ari (Ariadne), Cassandra, Medusa, Minos, and Ari’s twin brother, who is the Minotaur. The Fates appear through Lachy (Lachesis).
The show reimagines these figures, so each name is best read as a signpost to a myth, not a promise that the series follows one ancient version. The sections below separate what each character is in the source myths from what the show has made of them. Netflix’s materials for Season 1, published on August 30, 2024, are the basis for the show-specific details.
Cast at a glance
| Character | Actor | Mythic identity | Role in KAOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zeus | Jeff Goldblum | King of the gods | Central figure in the struggle over divine power |
| Hera | Janet McTeer | Queen of the gods, Zeus’s wife and sister | Politically powerful and personally complicated |
| Hades | David Thewlis | God of death, ruler of the Underworld | Takes Zeus’s prophecy seriously; his efforts for his family affect the mortal dead |
| Persephone | Rakie Ayola | Queen of the Underworld, Hades’s wife | Says she married Hades willingly |
| Poseidon | Cliff Curtis | God of the sea | Zeus’s younger brother; Netflix’s synopsis also links him to storms, earthquakes and horses |
| Prometheus | Stephen Dillane | Chained to a cliff for giving fire to humanity | Zeus’s old friend, now plotting against him |
| Dionysus | Nabhaan Rizwan | Associated with pleasure, madness and wild frenzy | Zeus’s son; starts as a party-loving figure who wants to be treated as an adult |
| Lachy (Lachesis) | Suzy Eddie Izzard | One of the Fates | Writes human prophecies and sits beyond Zeus’s control |
| Riddy | Aurora Perrineau | Eurydice | Orpheus’s wife; unhappy in her marriage and given more agency and interiority |
| Orpheus | Killian Scott | Poet and lyre player | A globally famous rock star who tries to challenge death |
| Caeneus | Misia Butler | Mortal warrior of myth | Reframed as gentler and more self-sacrificing; his Underworld story joins the prophecy plot |
| Ari | Leila Farzad | Ariadne, daughter of Minos | Daughter and heir of President Minos of Krete; her family is tied to the prophecy |
| Minos | Stanley Townsend | King of Krete | President of Krete and Ari’s father |
| Glaucus / the Minotaur | Fady Elsayed | The Minotaur of the Minos legend | Ari’s twin brother, secretly raised in a cell and ordered by Minos to become the Minotaur |
| Cassandra | Billie Piper | Trojan prophet whose truths go unheeded | In the finale, tells Riddy that Riddy is now a prophet too |
| Medusa | Debi Mazar | Gorgon of Greek myth | Dead and working in the Underworld at Riverbank Management by the Lethe; an adversary for Riddy and Caeneus |
The gods and divine figures
Zeus (Jeff Goldblum)
Zeus is king of the gods, and the series builds its central conflict around him. A wrinkle on his forehead convinces him that an old prophecy about the fall of his family is coming true. His paranoia and his attempts to hold on to power drive much of the plot. Goldblum summed up his take on the role this way: “Our Zeus is the three c’s — complicated, charismatic, [and] cruel.”
Hera (Janet McTeer)
Hera is queen of the gods and Zeus’s wife and sister. The show gives her political weight and a complicated inner life rather than presenting her as a stock jealous spouse. Critics have singled out this reinterpretation; The Atlantic’s September 2024 review named Hera among the characters the series reworks most visibly.
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Hades (David Thewlis)
Hades is Zeus’s brother, god of death, and ruler of the Underworld. He takes Zeus’s prophecy seriously, and his attempts to help his family have consequences for the mortal dead, which connects the Underworld storyline to the wider power struggle.
Persephone (Rakie Ayola)
Persephone is queen of the Underworld and Hades’s wife. Netflix’s Season 1 guide specifically says that this Persephone states she married Hades willingly. That choice deliberately pushes back on the familiar picture of her as a captive, and it is one of the adaptation choices critics pointed to in The Atlantic’s review.
Poseidon (Cliff Curtis)
Poseidon is Zeus’s younger brother and god of the sea. Netflix’s official synopsis also associates him with storms, earthquakes and horses, which are the traditional attributes that the show keeps as visible signposts.
Prometheus (Stephen Dillane)
Prometheus is Zeus’s old friend. In myth he is chained to a cliff and tortured for stealing fire from the gods and giving it to humanity. In KAOS he is also plotting against Zeus. Creator Charlie Covell calls their rivalry “the spine of the show,” which makes him one of the main drivers of the story rather than a background figure.
Dionysus (Nabhaan Rizwan)
Dionysus is Zeus’s son, associated with pleasure, madness and wild frenzy. The series begins him as a party-loving figure who wants to be treated as an adult with agency. His arc follows that wish for independence from his father.
Lachy / Lachesis (Suzy Eddie Izzard)
Lachy is one of the Fates. Netflix’s guide says the Fates write human prophecies and exist beyond Zeus’s control. That placement matters because the prophecy that drives the plot is not something Zeus can simply rewrite.
Rank #3
Mortals and mythic heroes
Riddy (Aurora Perrineau)
Riddy is the series’ version of Eurydice and the wife of Orpheus. She is unhappy in her marriage and begins a story that gives her more agency and interiority than the passive Eurydice of many retellings. Readers looking for the classic Orpheus and Eurydice story should expect the emotional center to move toward her point of view.
Orpheus (Killian Scott)
Orpheus is Riddy’s husband. In the myths he is the great poet and lyre player. In KAOS he has been rewritten as a globally famous rock star. His attempt to challenge death is central to the show’s version of the Orpheus and Eurydice story.
Caeneus (Misia Butler)
Caeneus is a mortal whose Underworld story joins the prophecy plot. Covell describes this version as a gentler, more self-sacrificing warrior than versions of the myth that portray him as macho and violent. The Atlantic’s review also flagged Caeneus as one of the series’ main reinterpretations.
Rank #4
Ari (Leila Farzad)
Ari is Ariadne, daughter and heir of President Minos of Krete. Her family history and a prophecy place her inside the larger struggle over Zeus’s rule. Because her father’s attempt to outmaneuver the prophecy is what links her family to the Minotaur legend, Ari is the bridge between the divine plot and the Minos storyline.
Minos (Stanley Townsend)
Minos is president of Krete and Ari’s father. His attempt to outmaneuver a prophecy connects his family to the Minotaur legend. Among the mortal characters, his decisions are among the most direct sources of the family conflict.
Glaucus / the Minotaur (Fady Elsayed)
Glaucus is Ari’s twin brother. Netflix’s finale explainer, published on August 30, 2024, says Minos secretly raises him in a cell and orders him to become the Minotaur. The show’s use of the Minotaur therefore turns a monster from the legend into a son whose identity is shaped by his father.
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Cassandra (Billie Piper)
Cassandra is a Trojan prophet whose truths go unheeded. Her role grows in the finale, where she tells Riddy that Riddy is now a prophet too, which links Riddy’s arc to the prophecy theme.
Medusa (Debi Mazar)
Medusa is dead and works in the Underworld at Riverbank Management by the Lethe. Netflix introduces her as an adversarial figure for Riddy and Caeneus, which places her among the characters who move the story against the protagonists rather than only supporting it.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the show reworks its source myths
Netflix describes the series as turning familiar Greek mythology “on its head with a contemporary twist.” In practice, that means Orpheus becomes a rock star, Riddy gets a more active point of view, and Caeneus is reframed. Covell has said viewers do not need prior myth knowledge to follow the story: “I never want people to feel they can’t watch the show unless they’ve done their homework.” Familiar myths do reward attentive viewers with what Netflix calls Easter eggs, but they are not a requirement. The Atlantic’s September 2024 review reached a similar conclusion, highlighting the series’ reinterpretations of Eurydice, Medusa, Persephone, Caeneus and Hera.
Ways to group the cast
With a large ensemble, four comparisons help readers keep track of who is who:
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- Olympus, Earth and Underworld. Zeus and Hera anchor the upper realm, Hades and Persephone rule the Underworld, and Medusa works there in a mortal-facing role.
- Traditional mythic role versus KAOS’s modern role. Compare each character’s classical identity in the table above with the role described in the show.
- Relationship to Zeus’s prophecy. Prometheus opposes Zeus, Lachy writes the prophecies, Ari and Glaucus are caught in Minos’s attempt to escape one, and Cassandra and Riddy are the characters who recognize the prophetic truth.
These comparisons work best as reading tools. They do not imply that one ancient version of each myth is the standard the show is measured against.
Quick Recap
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