Vikings: Valhalla, or simply Valhalla, is a historical drama television series created by Jeb Stuart for Netflix that acts as a sequel to Vikings. The eight-episode first season premiered on February 25, 2022. With a 24-episode order announced in November 2019, the series was officially renewed for a second and third season in March 2022. The second season premiered on January 12, 2023. The third and final season premiered on July 11, 2024.
Set more than 100 years after the events of Vikings; in England, tensions between the descendants of the Vikings (Norse or "Danes") and native English reach a bloody breaking point. The Norse also clash amongst themselves over conflicting Christian and pagan beliefs. The beginning of the series depicts the St. Brice's Day massacre in 1002 and covers the beginning of the end of the Viking Age.[1]
On January 4, 2019, alongside the announcement that Vikings would end after its sixth season, it was announced that Michael Hirst and MGM Television were developing a spin-off series with writer Jeb Stuart.[2] On November 19, 2019, it was announced that this series, titled Vikings: Valhalla, would take place a century after the end of the original series and would be released on Netflix.[3] The 24-episode series was made by MGM Television, and filmed primarily in Ireland, working from the same Ashford Studios in County Wicklow. The series focuses "on the adventures of Leif Erikson, Freydís Eiríksdóttir and Harald Sigurdsson".[4]
On March 9, 2022, the series was officially renewed for a second and third season.[5] On November 21, 2022, it was announced that the second season would premiere on January 12, 2023.[6] On June 12, 2024, it was announced that the third and final season would premiere on July 11, 2024.[7][8][9]
In November 2020, it was reported that Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Frida Gustavsson, and David Oakes had been cast in the series.[10] Gustavsson was later revealed to have been cast as Freydís Eiríksdóttir and Oakes as Godwin while Jóhannesson had been cast as Olaf Haraldsson though earlier reports stated that he had been cast as Harald Sigurdsson, a part later given to Leo Suter. Sam Corlett, Bradley Freegard, Laura Berlin and Caroline Henderson rounded out the main cast as Leif Erikson, King Canute, Queen Emma and Jarl Estrid Haakon respectively.[11] Pollyanna McIntosh and Asbjørn Krogh Nissen were cast in the supporting roles of Queen Ælfgifu and Jarl Kåre.
In May 2022, Florian Munteanu was announced to be portraying General Georgios Maniakes in the third season.[12] In June, Goran Višnjić was also announced to be portraying Erik the Red in the third season.[13] In November, new cast members for the second season were announced that included Bradley James as Lord Hárekr, Hayat Kamille as Mariam, Marcin Dorocinski as Grand Prince Yaroslav the Wise, Sofya Lebedeva as Eleana, Tolga Safer as Kurya, and Stanislav Callas as Jorundr.[14]
Showrunner Jeb Stuart's writing team includes Vanessa Alexander, Declan Croghan and Eoin McNamee.[15] The first episode was directed by Niels Arden Oplev.[16]
Vikings: Valhalla started filming in October 2020 at Ashford Studios, Wicklow, where the previous series Vikings was filmed. Shooting was suspended due to a number of positive COVID-19 tests, only to resume after a few days. At the time a number of cast and crew were reported to have tested positive; however, it emerged that the production had received a number of false positive tests.[17][18] Directors for the first season included the BAFTA-winning Danish director Niels Arden Oplev, Steve Saint Leger, who directed several episodes of Vikings,[10] and Hannah Quinn.[15]
Filming later resumed at Ashford Studios in August 2021[19] and production on the second season wrapped later that year in November.[20]
Production on the third season began in May 2022 and wrapped later that year in October.[21]
The musical score for the first season was composed by Trevor Morris. Amalie Bruun of Myrkur provided the kulning vocals for the opening credits.[22] The series also made heavy use of music from the album The Word as Power by Lustmord, which was also featured in Season 6 of Vikings.[citation needed]
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports a 90% approval rating for the first season based on 29 reviews and an average rating of 7.0/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Reveling in the glory of straightforward adventure storytelling, Valhalla is a bloody-good dramatization of Leif Eriksson's conquests."[23] Metacritic gave it a weighted average score of 70 out of 100 based on reviews from 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[24] The second season has a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 7 reviews and an average rating of 7.7/10.[23]
The series was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode at the 21st Visual Effects Society Awards.[25]
Vikings: Valhalla, a mobile strategy game developed by Emerald City Games, was released on iOS and Android on September 7, 2023 and requires an active Netflix subscription to play.[26]
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