The Northman Officially Gets R Rating for ‘Strong Bloody Violence’

Robert Eggers, the man who brought us the award-winning films The Witch and The Lighthouse, has a new film hitting theaters this April 22, 2022.

The Northman is an action-filled epic that follows a young Viking prince on his quest to avenge his father’s murder.  Apparently, this is the same Norse legend that Shakespeare used as inspiration for Hamlet.

Watch the official trailer below:

 

Viking tales are in demand with Netflix’s Vikings: Valhalla standing strong as one of the streaming service’s top 10 shows.  What may take The Northman to the next level above all the other popular Viking stories is the reported abundance of strong bloody violence and nudity.

---

“That climax, where I rip a guy’s throat out and howl at the moon…it was primal,” Skarsgård explained. “I just let it all out. I was exhausted, and I think you see it in the shot. I was a wreck. Truly a wreck.” – Alexander Skarsgård

---

Don’t think Eggers will be leaning on just sex and violence to win over fans.  The Northman is sure to have some spectacular performances with its all-star cast that includes the likes of Nicole Kidman as Queen Gudrun, Ethan Hawke as King Horvendill, Willem Dafoe as Heimir the Fool, Björk as the Slav Witch, Anya Taylor-Joy as Olga, and Claes Bang as Fjölnir alongside Alexander Skarsgård as Amleth, the Viking warrior prince.

Flashback:Check out our interview iHorror.com did with Director Robert Eggers for his film The Lighthouse. 

Although all signs are looking like The Northman should be one hell of an entertaining ride, they do have quite the hurdle to overcome.  The production cost for The Northman came in at a whopping $90 million and other big-name movies will be trying to pull away some theatergoers.

In any case, they definitely have our attention and we’ll be there with popcorn & soda in hand this April 22nd!

---

Here is a breakdown of the violence and nudity in The Northman:

(From ParentPreviews.com)

Violence: 

People, including women and children, are frequently brutally slaughtered with a variety of weapons, including swords, knives, arrows, spears, and axes. Individuals are decapitated, stabbed through the head, disemboweled, drugged into a panic that leads to suicide, burned alive, and ritualistically sacrificed. Several animals are killed. Corpses are frequently seen, and on some occasions, dismembered and artistically rearranged.

Sexual Content: 

Male and female characters are seen nude in sexual and non-sexual contexts. Characters are briefly seen having sex from a distance without clear detail. There are references to incest and allusions to rape. A character smears menstrual blood on another. There is one sexually suggestive scene where buttocks are visible and there is thrusting detail. A woman shows her genitals, covered in menstrual blood, to a man to deter him from raping her. A woman attempts to seduce her own son, who rejects her.

Profanity:

There are several uses of mild curses and one use of scatological profanity.

Alcohol / Drug Use: 

Adult characters are seen drinking, sometimes to excess. Characters, including children, are given hallucinogenic substances as part of religious rituals.