Keith David to replace the late Lance Reddick as voice of Zavala in Destiny 2

When veteran actor Lance Reddick died unexpectedly earlier this year, it took fans of his prolific work in movies, TV, and video games by surprise. In particular, Destiny 2 players honored Reddick's voice performance in the game by gathering online to salute his character, Commander Zavala.

But the game must go on, and Bungie announced Thursday that Keith David will be stepping into Reddick's shoes as the voice of Zavala in upcoming expansion release The Final Shape.

"Commander Zavala has been central to the story we have been telling since the original Destiny, and we have plans to continue his journey," the Destiny 2 team wrote in a post on Bungie's website.

However, they clarified that Reddick's existing lines in the game will remain untouched.

The Destiny franchise is set hundreds of years in the future, where the last of humanity survives in the Last City. Players customize their own characters, known as Guardians, but there are also plenty of non-playable characters, or NPCs, that they can interact with for various purposes. Zavala is one of those NPCs.

"I am honored to continue the great work of Lance Reddick as Zavala," said David, who has starred in genre films like John Carpenter's The Thing and Jordan Peele's Nope in addition to doing voice work on animated shows like Rick & Morty. "Lance captured the character's sense of integrity so wonderfully. It is my intention to continue that work."

Related content:

• Lance Reddick, The Wire and John Wick star, dies at 60
• Keanu Reeves and John Wick 4 director Chad Stahelski dedicate film to the late Lance Reddick: 'We will miss him dearly'
• The Wire creator and stars pay tribute to late actor Lance Reddick: 'You made your mark'