Director Robert Eggers is back with his newest movie, an epic Viking saga titled The Northman that hits theaters in April. Its story focuses on the Nordic prince Amleth (played by Alexander Skarsgård), who seeks to avenge his father's death and save his mother with the help of a crafty woman named Olga.
The Northman's cast is packed with big-name stars, including those who have already appeared in other Eggers films, like Anya Taylor-Joy and Willem Dafoe. With such a great group of actors coming together for the first time, this is a fantastic opportunity to check out some of their best roles.
Ralph Ineson - The Witch (2015)
Actor Ralph Ineson will show up in The Northman, though Focus Features hasn't revealed what role he will play in the movie. He previously collaborated with Eggers on The Witch, a gothic horror movie set in 1600s New England.
In The Witch, Ineson plays a Puritan father trying to keep his family together while an unseen evil lurks in the woods outside their isolated settlement. The dark and grisly tale was a critical and box office success, winning multiple awards and grossing more than $40 million on a $4 million budget.
Kate Dickie - The Green Knight (2021)
Kate Dickie and Ralph Ineson appear together in both The Witch and The Green Knight, and they'll meet again in The Northman (Dickie plays a character named Halldora the Pict). The Green Knight is an epic fantasy based on the Arthurian legend of Sir Gawain, who must undertake a dangerous journey to fulfill his end of a deathly bargain with the mystical titular character.
In The Green Knight, Dickie plays Guinevere, the Queen of Britain and wife of King Arthur. It's one of her best movies, notable for its brilliant performances and writer-director Lowery's contributions to the source material.
Björk - Dancer in the Dark (2000)
Icelandic musician Björk won the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival for her performance in Lars von Trier's musical melodrama Dancer in the Dark. She plays a poor factory worker who is slowly losing her vision, saving money for an operation so her son won't have the same condition she does, and finding escape in the constructed joys of Hollywood musicals.
Björk has a part in The Northman (which was co-written by her frequent collaborator Sjón) as a mysterious seeress. Her daughter, Ísadóra Bjarkardóttir Barney, will also appear.
Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson - Game Of Thrones (2011-2019)
Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson plays Thorfinnr in The Northman. It's one of the actor's first roles aside from his recognizable appearance as Gregor Clegane, "The Mountain", on Game of Thrones.
Taking over the role in Game of Thrones' epic fourth season, record-setting strongman Björnsson quickly established himself as the man to play "The Mountain" — a character who's famous for being a ruthless, relentless killing machine. With this in mind, there's no doubt that Björnsson's character in The Northman will be a force to be reckoned with.
Nicole Kidman - Big Little Lies (2017-2019)
Nicole Kidman plays Queen Gudrún, the mother of Amleth, in The Northman. She has won many acting awards across her career, including an Emmy for her role as Celeste Wright on the television series Big Little Lies (which she also executive produced).
At the beginning of the series, Celeste is a retired attorney who seems to have a perfect home life, though her friends don't know that her husband Perry is abusive and violent towards her. The hated character of Perry in Big Little Lies is, incidentally, played by Alexander Skarsgård.
Ethan Hawke - First Reformed (2017)
Ethan Hawke plays the murdered King Aurvandill in The Northman, and though he may have less screentime than the other stars, his role is arguably the most important. Hawke appears in many great movies, but his most recent hit was the tense drama film First Reformed.
In First Reformed, Hawke stars as a pastor who has a crisis of faith when he's approached by a concerned environmentalist whose wife is pregnant, and who doesn't want to bring up a child in a dying world. Hawke's stunning performance won him an Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead and arguably revived his career.
Willem Dafoe - The Lighthouse (2018)
Legendary actor Willem Dafoe will play a character called Hiemer the Fool in The Northman. Fans will recognize him from Eggers' previous film, The Lighthouse, in which he starred alongside Robert Pattinson.
The black-and-white psychological horror follows a pair of lighthouse keepers who begin to experience hallucinations and other strange phenomena while trapped on a claustrophobic island. Critics were fond of Dafoe's performance, and the film itself earned numerous accolades, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.
Claes Bang - The Square (2017)
Claes Bang plays the main villain of The Northman, the vicious Fjölnir, King Aurvandill's brother and killer. Though he's been acting since the '90s, Claes' breakout performance, a starring role in Ruben Östlund's satirical drama The Square, didn't come until 2017.
In The Square, Bang plays the curator of a prominent art museum, who is forced to contend with problems in both his home and work lives while in the midst of promoting a controversial installation. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it took home the festival's top award, the coveted Palme d'Or.
Anya Taylor-Joy - The Queen's Gambit (2020)
Anya Taylor-Joy plays Olga, the female lead of The Northman. Her first major film appearance was in Eggers' The Witch, so for the two creatives to reunite is only fitting. Taylor-Joy broke out on Netflix with her role in the series The Queen's Gambit, which according to the streaming service has been seen by more than 60 million people.
In The Queen's Gambit, Taylor-Joy stars as a professional chess player who struggles with addiction while in pursuit of perfection. Her mesmerizing performance won numerous Best Actress awards, including at that year's Golden Globes.
Alexander Skarsgård - Godzilla Vs. Kong (2021)
Alexander Skarsgård is the big star of The Northman, which is a lot of pressure for any actor to deal with. However, he's already proved that he has what it takes with his top-billed role in the recent blockbuster Godzilla vs. Kong.
In the much-anticipated fourth MonsterVerse film, Skarsgård plays a scientist who leads a search into the Hollow Earth, believing Kong's home holds a powerful energy source. Godzilla vs. Kong was a massive winner for Warner Bros., enthralling audiences and making more than $450 million worldwide.