Alexander Skarsgård leads a Viking raid in a new clip from Robert Eggers' The Northman. The film stars Skarsgård as a young Viking prince on an epic, bloody quest to avenge his father's murder. Skarsgård is joined by co-stars Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicole Kidman, Willem Dafoe, and singer Björk. Eggers wrote the script for The Northman with the award-winning Icelandic poet and novelist Sjón (Lamb).
Eggers is best known for his films The Witch and The Lighthouse, which were renowned for their strange, moody, atmospheric, and often shocking sequences of horror and violence. The Northman appears to be a more commercial effort for Eggers, although he recently clarified that the film still retains his odd sensibilities, calling the film an "arty, but commercial Viking movie" and that his best intention of making a movie akin to Braveheart or Gladiator is still on the "weirder" side. The film was shot on location in Iceland, which star Taylor-Joy found to be "infuriatingly joyful" to shoot in the muddy, freezing harsh conditions.
In a new clip for The Northman (via IGN), Skarsgård's Prince Amleth is seen leading a berserker Viking raid into a village, utilizing an axe to climb the battlements. Skarsgård shows off an impressive physique, not to mention the physical feat of attempting such an obstacle, all while dodging spears from the opposing side. The murky, real-world setting is on full display in the clip, highlighting Eggers' visual style set within the Icelandic landscape. Take a look at the clip below:
Click here to watch the clip on YouTube.
This isn't the first time Skarsgård has played to his roots, as the actor made a tremendous impact playing the character Eric Northman, a Viking-turned-vampire in the HBO series True Blood. It's also not the first time that the actor has sported a chiseled physique, as he appears similarly in The Legend of Tarzan, where he played the famed Edgar Rice Burroughs character. The actor recently starred as Randall Flagg in the latest adaptation of Stephen King's The Stand and was one of the leads in 2021's Godzilla vs. Kong.
Eggers' work has been lauded for his visual and narrative style, which makes for a unique, visceral, and often jarring cinematic language. The Northman looks to follow that path, while also being his most commercially-minded project to date. While it's unclear if The Northman will break through to the average moviegoer, the push to get the word out is much more significant than his previous efforts, which shows strong faith from the studio in making The Northman a hit that goes beyond the arthouse crowd. The Northman opens in theaters on April 22nd.
Source: IGN
