Alexander Skarsgard, Björk, Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicole Kidman star in The Northman trailer

Virgin Radio

21 Dec 2021, 09:22

The first trailer for Robert Eggers’ upcoming film has dropped, and not only does it look absolutely epic, but it features a whole host of familiar faces.

The thriller is set in 10th Century Iceland, and has a star-studded cast. The narrative sees Alexander Skarsgard play a massive Viking prince named Amleth, who goes on a quest for vengeance after his father, played by Ethan Hawke, is killed.

Also starring in the film is Nicole Kidman, who plays Queen Gudrun, Amleth’s mother. Elsewhere in the cast is legendary Icelandic musician Björk, who plays a witch. 

Meanwhile Anya Taylor-Joy, from The Queen’s Gambit and more recently Last Night in Soho, plays a strange character who says that she can break men’s minds. Taylor-Joy also appeared in one of the director’s previous offerings, the incredible atmospheric horror, The Witch, back in 2015.

If that weren’t a strong enough cast already, then another big-name actor that has worked with Robert Eggers also makes an appearance. Willem Dafoe, who was in The Lighthouse, will be in the upcoming film.

The screenplay for the movie was co-written by Eggers and Icelandic poet Sjón, who has worked with Björk on a number of her songs.

Check out the thrilling trailer for The Northman here. Whilst Eggers' previous films could be described as slow-burning, this looks like it is really ramping up the action! 

Talking to Entertainment Weekly, filmmaker Eggers said: “It's basically the story of Hamlet or The Lion King, which was originally an old Norse story where the Hamlet character was called Amleth. We've told it in our own way.”

He added: “It is a Viking saga with magic and swords and mysticism and all the stuff that you'd want from that.”

The Northman is set to arrive in UK cinemas in April 2022. Judging by the trailer, this is definitely one to go and see when it hits our screens!