TheNorthman director Robert Eggers breaks down the unique challenges that came from filming the movie's brutal volcano fight: 'I mean, there was nothing easy about making this movie.'
Director and co-writer of The Northman, Robert Eggers, talks about how stressful filming his most recent feature was, especially when it came to the climactic battle on a volcano that presented a unique challenge. The Northman marks Eggers' third outing as a feature film director following his two previous period pieces that delve into the horrific, The Witch and The Lighthouse.
Based off a medieval Scandinavian legend, The Northman follows the journey of Prince Amleth . From a young age, he is forced into a lifelong quest of vengeance against his uncle Fjölnir after he kills Amleth's father , seizes control of his kingdom, and leaves Amleth with no choice but to flee to a Viking settlement. As with his other films, Eggers went to great lengths to make the piece period accurate, including depicting the graphic violence of hand-to-hand combat in the 9th century.
If it’s not a Viking raid of a village with hundreds of extras of stuntmen, horses, cows, chickens, geese, children, then it was a storm at sea at night on a Viking ship, or a naked sword fight on a volcano. I mean, there was nothing easy about making this movie. It was only hard ...We actually had to add things digitally because they were wearing thongs [instead of being naked] because no one wanted to get their bits chopped off.
Filming scenes containing nudity have been met with more sensitivity in recent years, including the addition of on-set intimacy coordinators to make actors feel more comfortable and in control of their bodily autonomy. It sounds like the decision to have the Northman actors wear thongs gave them a certain degree of autonomy as well as protected their most sensitive areas from potential sword blows.
These recent details about the challenges that the cast and crew of The Northman faced showcase how filming the brutal period piece was just as intense as the final product appears to be. If the film is anything like Eggers' last two directorial outings, it's sure to be stylistically impeccable and receive critical acclaim for its inspired performances. It's not every day that you have actors willing to practically sword fight on an active volcano in nothing more than a thong.
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