Norman Reedus stars as Sam Bridges, the main character of Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding, but gamers have apparently already played a character portrayed by him years ago.
Reedus was involved in P.T., the playable teaser for the canceled Silent Hills that would have been a collaboration between the creative minds of video game designer Hideo Kojima and director Guillermo del Toro. Reedus appears in the cinematic that follows the conclusion of P.T., but it was unclear if his likeness was already captured for the first-person demo.
Apparently, gamers were already playing as Reedus in P.T., according to the discovery of YouTuber Lance McDonald. By hacking the teaser’s cameras, he was able to peer into an obscured mirror’s reflection from another angle, revealing the face of The Walking Dead star.
Just to put any uncertainty finally to rest after all this time, yes, the guy you play as in P.T. is the same guy we see in the ending cinematic. Not that there any real doubt, but yeah, it's Norman Reedus the whole time. pic.twitter.com/PXh5svLRSi
— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) December 12, 2019
Players were not able to see the character’s face in the mirror by design, as it was purposely covered to set up the surprise of Reedus appearing at the end of P.T. The discovery also reveals that Reedus’ involvement in the project goes beyond the cinematic, as his likeness was apparently already captured for an in-game model.
McDonald continues to dive into P.T., which has been a gift that keeps on giving for fans of the horror genre. Earlier this year, McDonald found a hidden scene of a decapitated woman in a bathtub, which may explain what happened to Lisa, the ghost that haunts the game’s hallways. A more chilling discovery made by the YouTuber was that Lisa is horrifyingly following players the whole time, which explains the sounds and shadows that come from behind them.
Silent Hills was canceled, but Kojima’s connection with Reedus resurfaced in Death Stranding. The game features a star-studded cast that includes Léa Seydoux and Mads Mikkelsen, who won Best Performance at The Game Awards 2019 for his portrayal of antagonist Cliff Unger.
Meanwhile, Kojima dropped hints that he may be returning to the horror genre for his next project, after incorporating some horror elements in Death Stranding. Fans are hoping that he revives Silent Hills, and if that happens, Reedus may find himself once again the main character in a Kojima game.