Total Film released a new exclusive image from The Northman courtesy of Focus Features which gives us a new look at Alexander Skarsgård's Prince Amleth as he makes his charge into battle. The film is director Robert Eggers' latest period piece following The Witch and The Lighthouse, only on a grander, grittier scale that takes its cues from Scandinavian legends.
This new image captures that grittiness in full, showing Skarsgård bare-chested, dirty, and screaming as he heads into battle with his brethren with an ax in hand. The drab lighting captures a similar tone to The Witch, capturing the rugged outdoors feel of medieval Scandinavia and Vikings as they do battle in the snow. Crucially, it's a cold image that captures the environments we're likely to see throughout Eggers' historical epic and feels appropriate for a film about Norsemen. Eggers was shocked by Skarsgård's dedication to creating that gritty Viking look for the role, telling Total Film, "The amount of discipline that Alex put into this role is crazy. He transformed his body more wildly than he did in Tarzan."
Eggers wrote the film with the help of Icelandic poet, author, lyricist Sjón, basing the film on Saxo Grammaticus' original tale of Amleth. The film sees Skarsgård's Amleth hungry for vengeance after witnessing the death of his father at the hands of his uncle Fjölnir. Fjölnir also kidnaps Amleth's mother, leading the young prince on a warpath to right the wrongs committed by his uncle by ending his life. Alongside Skarsgård, Eggers managed to bring back a few of his previous stars including Anya Taylor-Joy and Willem Dafoe. Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Ethan Hawke, and Icelandic pop star Björk are also set to star.
Back in December, Eggers spoke in an interview with Collider about his dedication to authenticity. Between bringing in Sjón and the foremost historians on Vikings and Icelandic culture, he's hoping to continue his trend of bringing a distinctive take on a period that has been recounted numerous times in media. The director is reuniting with his cinematography partner Jarin Blaschke to capture that same feel as his previous work.
The Northman comes to theaters on April 22. Check out the latest image courtesy of Total Film below.
