Vikings: Valhalla is the sequel series to Vikings, and it's set many, many years after the story of Ragnar Lothbrok and company.
Vikings: Valhalla is the sequel series to Vikings, but it doesn’t include the characters from the main series as it’s set in a different era of the Viking Age – but when exactly does Valhalla take place in and how long after Vikings? Historical dramas have become quite popular, and one of the most successful TV shows from that genre in recent years is Vikings, created by Michael Hirst (The Tudors). Vikings premiered on History Channel in 2013 and was originally planned to be a miniseries, but it ended up covering six seasons, coming to an end in 2020.
Vikings explored the first years of the Viking Age, from the Lindisfarne raid (shown in season 1) onward, and it initially followed Ragnar Lothbrok (Travis Fimmel) and his travels alongside his Viking brothers, such as his real brother, Rollo (Clive Standen), and Kattegat’s boat builder, Floki (Gustaf Skarsgård). However, as the series progressed, Vikings focused more on Ragnar’s sons and their own journeys, and after Ragnar’s death in season 4, they became the leads of the series until its end. Six seasons weren’t enough to cover Viking history, so a sequel series was announced in 2019, and it would be set in a different era of the Viking Age and with new characters.
Titled Vikings: Valhalla, the series is a continuation of Vikings but without bringing back the surviving characters of the main series, instead focusing on a new generation of Vikings and enemies, who face different problems than those of Ragnar and company. Vikings: Valhalla follows Leif Erikson (Sam Corlett), Freydís Eiríksdóttir (Frida Gustavsson), and Harald Hardrada (Leo Suter), three warriors with different backgrounds and beliefs who come together in a journey that takes them across oceans and battlefields, all with the conflict between Vikings and English royals – Christians and Pagans – as the backdrop. Vikings: Valhalla takes place a century after the events of Vikings, which is why none of the main (and surviving) characters from the original series is present.
The beginning of the Viking Age was marked by the Lindisfarne raid on June 8, 793, and Vikings ended in 821, with Ivar the Boneless’ (Alex Høgh Andersen) death and Ubbe’s (Jordan Patrick Smith) arrival at Newfoundland. The events of Vikings: Valhalla kick off with the St. Brice’s Day massacre, which took place on November 13, 1002, so the series begins in 1002-1003. However, it’s important to remember that, even though both Vikings and Vikings: Valhalla are based on historical events, real people, and some legends as well, the timeline fluctuates and changes, so it isn’t exactly accurate. Both series condensed various events that in real life happened several years apart and even the ages of the characters didn’t match at one point (many should have been older and didn’t seem to age at all), but from a historical point of view, Vikings: Valhalla takes place in 1002-1003.
Just like with the main series, Vikings: Valhalla takes real-life events, people, and a couple of legends to build its own story, and as much as it aims to be historically accurate, the drama and more are often prioritized, making way for inaccuracies and confusion with the timeline. To avoid confusion, the best way to approach these shows would be as separate entities, even if one is the continuation of the other, to an extent.
