History Channel’s saga of Ragnar Lothbrok and his sons has come to an end with the Vikings season 6 finale – but that’s not the end of the story. While Vikings season 7 isn’t in the cards, fans can look forward to a return to Kattegat in the upcoming sequel/spinoff series Vikings: Valhalla, which will pick up more than 100 years after the events of the original show.
Loosely based on the Norse and Icelandic sagas, Vikings began around the year 793 and explored a period of several decades thereafter. Initially focusing on the legendary Viking ruler Ragnar Lothbrok, the focus shifted to Ragnar’s sons after he was killed off in season 4. In Vikings season 6, Ragnar’s first-born son Bjorn Ironside campaigned to become King of Norway and fought off an invasion by the Rus (who were joined by Bjorn’s brothers, Hvitserk and Ivar). Meanwhile, Ragnar’s second-oldest son Ubbe led a group of settlers across the sea in search of a rumored “Golden Land” – known today as North America.
Since Vikings premiered in 2013 it has drawn a fascinating picture of Norse culture and history, while also gradually building up the power struggle between the pagan gods and Christianity that the Vikings were ultimately destined to lose. Here’s how Vikings’ story will continue beyond the lives of Ragnar’s sons.
Vikings Season 7 Isn’t Happening
Though many Vikings fans felt that the show wasn’t as engaging after Ragnar died, the series wasn’t cancelled due to a drop in ratings or interest. Rather, showrunner Michael Hirst said that bringing the story to a close in Vikings season 6 was a creative decision. Speaking to Variety in 2019, Hirst explained:
“I always knew where I wanted the show to go and more or less where it would end if I was given the opportunity. What I was trying to do was write the saga of Ragnar Lothbrok and his sons. After six seasons and 89 episodes, that’s what I felt — finally — I’d done. We stopped shooting the final episode in November last year and I felt that I’d said all I needed to say about Ragnar and his sons. I told my saga.”
By the end of Vikings season 6, only one of the original characters from season 1 was still in the show, and his arc had reached a natural conclusion. While there are certainly ways that the show could continue to follow Ragnar’s surviving sons, there was already a sense in season 6 that Vikings was running out of stories to tell. The series was brought full circle with a final raid on Wessex by Ivar and Hvitserk, while Ubbe’s adventures in the west fulfilled Ragnar’s dream of exploring the world. Vikings season 6 wrapped in December 2020. But while the story of Ragnar Lothbrok and his sons is finished, the story of the Vikings is not.
Vikings Will Continue In Spinoff Series Valhalla
In November 2019 it was announced that a sequel/spinoff series called Vikings: Valhalla was in development from Hirst and MGM Television, and had been picked up by Netflix. The series was co-created, written and executive produced by Die Hard screenwriter Jeb Stuart, with Hirst providing oversight. Vikings: Valhalla will be set more than 100 years after the events of Vikings, and will follow other famous figures from the sagas such as Erik the Red and Harald Hardrada.
Netflix has covered similar ground to Vikings in its historical drama The Last Kingdom, which focuses on the rise to power of Alfred the Great and has several other characters in common with Vikings. The Last Kingdom season 5 is expected to release on Netflix in late 2021, and the popularity of that show may have been a factor in the decision to pick up Vikings: Valhalla.
Vikings: Valhalla’s Release Date
Vikings: Valhalla began filming in the summer of 2020 at Ashford Studios in Ireland, and although production was suspended for a few days due to positive COVID-19 tests among the cast and crew, it quickly got back on track. Valhalla was originally supposed to begin filming in the first half of 2020, but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Initially, the series was thought to release near the end of 2021, but the setbacks delayed the first season further. Barring any further problems, Vikings: Valhalla will arrive on Netflix at some point in 2022.
Vikings: Valhalla’s Setting & Story
Whereas Vikings covered the beginning of the Viking age in England, Valhalla will be about the years leading up to the end of it. Vikings took a lot of liberties with historical dates and events and generally avoided getting too specific about what year it was, and it looks like Vikings: Valhalla will continue that tradition. The series will feature the Viking explorer Erik the Red (who died circa 1003) and Erik’s son Leif (who died circa 1020), but will also feature the Norman King William the Conqueror (who was born circa 1028) and begin with the death of King Edward the Confessor, which occurred in 1066. Broadly speaking, it looks like Vikings: Valhalla will be set in 11th century Scandinavia and England, but don’t expect total historical accuracy.
Given how much time has passed, Vikings‘ characters will all be dead by the time Valhalla begins, but the sequel series will nonetheless reveal their legacy. In Vikings, Ragnar’s brother Rollo left Scandinavia, his people and the Norse gods behind him to become the first ruler of Normandy - and Rollo’s great-great-great-grandson was William the Conqueror. According to historical records Erik the Red was the first Viking explorer to reach North America, but in Vikings: Valhalla he could instead learn that Ubbe got there first – and find out what became of Ubbe’s small settlement.
Ragnar Lothbrok’s coastal home town of Kattegat, which had already grown to a large trading port by the end of Vikings season 6, will be one of the biggest trading ports in Europe by the time of Vikings: Valhalla. Speaking to Collider, Hirst explained how Vikings‘ characters will live on in Valhalla:
“Whenever [Vikings: Valhalla’s characters] meet in the great hall in Kattegat, of course they talk about the great heroes who used to sit in the same hall at the same table, and they were Ragnar Lothbrok, Lagertha, and Bjorn Ironside, and Ivar the Boneless, who are now mythic characters even within the show… So everything connects in a useful, and interesting, and fascinating way.”
Continuing the original series’ themes of Christianity’s conflict with the Norse pagan gods, Vikings: Valhalla will see a shift in the balance of power. Whereas for much of Vikings the kings of England were under siege by the Vikings and lost both land and gold to the Northmen, Vikings: Valhalla will see the gradual conversion of Scandinavian countries to Christianity (something that had already begun by the end of Vikings season 6). The first look trailer for Vikings: Valhalla revealed Lief Eriksson, a sailor who arrived from Greenland and is looking to prove himself in a fight. The trailer also offers a brief focus on Freydís Eiríksdóttir, who is shown in battle armor, later joining Lief in whatever the future holds for them. There is an ominous tone to the trailer, one that seems to suggest it will explore various layers to the various characters’ fight. Ships and swords and tensions make their presence known, with Valhalla clearly stating that change is indeed on the horizon.
Vikings: Valhalla’s Cast & Characters
The official announcement of Vikings: Valhalla named Leif Erikson, Freydis Eiriksdottir, Harald Hardrada and William the Conqueror among the characters who will appear in the show. Hirst has also said that Leif and Freydis’ father, Erik the Red, will appear in the series. This may confuse fans, given that Vikings season 6 also featured a red-haired Viking called Erik who briefly ruled over Kattegat with Queen Ingrid. However, a second Erik the Red isn’t all that surprising. Heroes in the sagas are often amalgams of people (Ragnar Lothbrok is believed to be a patchwork of real historical figures heavily embellished with fiction) or have their stories divided across different characters (Harald Hardrada was also known as Harald Fairhair, and may actually be the same person as Vikings‘ King Harald Finehair).
Vikings: Valhalla will star Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson (Game of Thrones) as Olaf “the Holy” Haraldsson, Frida Gustavsson (The Witcher) as Freydís Eiríksdóttir, David Oakes (The Borgias) as Earl Godwin, Laura Berlin as Emma of Normandy, Sam Corlett as Leif Eriksson, Bradley Freegard as King Canute “the Great”, Caroline Henderson as Jarl Haakon, Asbjørn Krogh as Jarl Kåre, Julian Seager as Jarl Gorm, Leo Suter as Harald Sigurdsson, Pollyanna McIntosh as Queen Ælfgifu of Denmark, John Kavanagh as the Seer, Pääru Oja as Arne Gormsson, Louis Davison as Prince Edmund, Bosco Hogan as Æthelred the Unready. Additionally, Yvonne Mai will play Merin, Bill Murphy is Odga, Alan Devine (who played Ealdorman Eadric in Vikings) was cast in the role of Ealdorman of Kent, and Gavin O’Connor (who played the Danish King Frodo in Vikings) has been cast as Ealdorman of East Anglia. With a sprawling cast of characters, Vikings: Valhalla should be interesting as it tells a new story while existing within the same historical universe as its predecessor.
About The Author
