Robert Eggers’ fascination with dark, gothic fantasy has intrigued and entertained viewers since his directorial debut, 2015’s The Witch. While he’s best known for horror movies, with 2024’s Nosferatu being his most recent, the director occasionally dives into action, with a healthy dose of dark fantasy, mythology, and real-world history thrown in for good measure. That’s what Eggers did in 2022 when he released The Northman, a bloody, violent, and vivid historical fantasy that mixed Viking culture with Norse mythology to create a truly unique action film. The film was recently added to streaming, and viewers cannot get enough of Eggers’ critically adored movie.
The Northman is currently streaming on HBO Max (formerly Max). The film is flying up the rankings, and currently sits as the sixth most popular movie on the platform this week. Eggers co-wrote The Northman with Sjón, an Icelandic writer, best known for 2021’s Lamb. The film starred Alexander Skarsgård (who has the best IMDb photo ever, go and look it up) as Amieth, a young Viking prince who sets out on a decades-long journey to avenge his father. The film features a stacked supporting cast, including Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Robert Eggers’ go-to-guy, Willem Dafoe.
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The Northman was a critical hit when it was released in 2022. It is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes at 90%. However, audiences were less impressed with the film, scoring it 64%. While the user reviews praised the film’s “brutal” action, many struggled with the film’s slower pacing, and felt mislead by the marketing. Ahead of its release, The Northman was promoted as a historical action film that would be packed full of violent fight scenes between Viking warriors. Instead, the film was a dark fantasy inspired by Viking culture and folklore, and was far slower and more introspective than a typical action movie. This was evident in its box office take. The Northman grossed just $69.9 million, falling just short of its estimated budget of $90 million.
What’s Next for Robert Eggers?
Universal Pictures
Over the past few years, Robert Eggers has established himself as one of the go-to gothic filmmakers. He’s like the modern equivalent of Tim Burton, if Tim Burton only made R-rated horror movies. Last year, Eggers released his biggest movie yet, the eagerly anticipated remake of Nosferatu. The film starred one of the other two Skarsgårds, IT’s Bill Skarsgård as Count Orlok, with Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter, Nicholas Hoult as Thomas Hutter, Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Friedrich Harding, and (once again) Willem Dafoe as Prof. Albin Eberhart von Franz.
Robert Eggers is following up Nosferatu with another dark fantasy film. This time, he’s moving from vampires to lycanthropes with Werwulf. Little is known about the film, but Eggers is co-writing the script with Sjón, so expect it to have some level of Norse influence. Plot details remain tightly under wraps, but Eggers has previously teased that the film will be set in the 13th Century.
Release Date
April 22, 2022
Runtime
137 minutes
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