Alexander Skarsgård is in berserker mode in this exclusive look at The Northman

With The Northman, director Robert Eggers is moving from the contained, claustrophobic brilliance of his first two features – The Witch and The Lighthouse – to a much grander canvas.

Here, he's dealing with a historical epic with a Shakespearean sweep, adapting the story of Viking prince Amleth, a figure from Scandinavian legend who was the inspiration for Hamlet. In 10th-century Iceland, Amleth is on a quest for vengeance against the uncle who murdered his father. It’s going to be bloody and brutal. Alexander Skarsgård plays the grown-up Amleth, while Ethan Hawke plays his ill-fated pa, Aurvandill, and Willem Dafoe (reuniting with Eggers after The Lighthouse) is Heimir the fool.

Also reteaming with Eggers after The Witch are Anya Taylor-Joy, Kate Dickie, and Ralph Ineson. Taylor-Joy plays Olga, who joins Amleth on his mission with her own particular set of skills.

The Northman is on the cover of the new issue of Total Film magazine, which is out this week, and here you can see three exclusive new stills from the film. Skarsgård’s Amleth is in full-on berserker mode on his roaring rampage of revenge, Hawke is looking suitably regal, and Dafoe’s looking, well, foolish below. Check them out below.

Alexander Skarsg&aring;rd in The Northman — (Image credit: Universal/Focus Features)

Ethan Hawke in The Northman — (Image credit: Universal/Focus Features)

Willem Dafoe in The Northman — (Image credit: Universal/Focus Features)

"When I first thought, ‘I want to make a Viking movie,’ I knew three things," Eggers tells Total Film in the new issue."I knew it needs to take place mostly in Iceland, it needs to have a revenge story, and it needs to have a naked swordfight on a volcano…"

The Northman hits UK cinemas on April 15, before opening in the US on April 2022. For much more on the film, including interviews with Eggers, Skarsgård, Taylor-Joy, Hawke, Dafoe and Claes Bang, check out the brand new issue of Total Film when it hits shelves this Thursday, March 3. Check out the new covers below.

Total Film's The Northman issue — (Image credit: Universal/Total Film)

If you’re a fan of Total Film magazine, please consider becoming a subscriber. If you subscribe via MagazinesDirect, you’ll save money on the cover price, and you’ll have the magazine delivered to your door before it hits the shops and you’ll get exclusive subscriber-only covers like the one you see above.

Total Film's subscription offer. — (Image credit: Total Film/Universal/Focus Features/Warner Bros/DC)

Matt Maytum is the former Editor of Total Film magazine. Over the past decade, Matt has worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at GamesRadar+. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.