The following contains spoilers for The Northman, now streaming on Peacock.
The new epic historical film The Northman was directed by Robert Eggers and had an amazing cast, including Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Claes Bang, Anya Taylor-Joy, Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe. The movie garnered immense praise and critical acclaim, putting The Northman at an 89 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The plot follows a Viking prince, Amleth (Skarsgård), whose father was murdered by his uncle when he was a young child, as he works his way back to his family as an adult to seek revenge.
The Northman premiered in Stockholm at Rigoletto Cinema, which is Skarsgård's hometown. Skarsgård was a co-producer on the film and was excited to fulfill his dream of creating a Viking story that featured accurate mythology and history from Scandinavia. Taylor-Joy played Olga, Amleth's romantic interest in the film, and their budding romance provided significant growth for Amleth, shifting his tunnel vision from simply seeking revenge to also planning for the continuation of his bloodline. Without Olga as a plot device, the film might have been too straightforward, and Amleth's bloodline would have ended with him.
For the first half of The Northman, Amleth's focus on revenge is incredibly important because it pushes him to travel back to his family and kill his uncle. This motivating force seems to come out of nowhere, paralleling the psychological phenomena of repressed memories. Essentially, he encounters a Seeress that reminds him of his original goal when he fled his family as a child, so Amleth leaves his life as a berserker and jumps on a boat heading to Iceland. This is where he meets Olga, and they instantly form a bond because they both want vengeance for what they've lost, even if Amleth did play a role in her personal misery.
Olga serves as a confidante for Amleth as he plots his revenge. She helps him with her magic, and they grow closer as the story continues. Amleth hasn't experienced genuine care for or from another person since he was a child, and he uses that feeling as fuel to continue with his plan. Life has beaten him down in so many ways, but Amleth stayed focused on his ultimate goal to avenge his father and save his mother. When the story twists into something much more sinister from Amleth's discussion with his mother, he seeks solace in Olga once again to provide comfort and encouragement.
Before confronting his mother, Amleth and Olga had made love, promising they would do anything to achieve their goals, but the reveal from his mother forced them on a different path. They leave together, and Amleth almost gives up on his original goal. Olga wants them to escape and live a life happily ever after somewhere else, but Amleth convinces himself that she and their babies will never be safe while his uncle still lives. Despite her protests, he returns for an epic final fight. He does achieve his goal of revenge, but he doesn't survive. The movie ends with confirmation that his bloodline will live on through Olga and their children.
The relationship between Amleth and Olga in The Northman is heartfelt and proved to be a compelling aspect of the movie. He had desires beyond his revenge, and that included a continued bloodline and a hope for a different type of life. Those feelings would have never surfaced without Olga's involvement. Although Amleth was still a murderer, he had a specific moral code he lived by, and his entire world was changed multiple times in the film. In many ways, Amleth was still mortal and had a basic need to be seen, heard and loved by another person. Olga provided that for him and gave him strength.
The Northman is now streaming on Peacock.