Is The Northman A True Story? Is The Northman Based On Hamlet?

The Northman is based very loosely on the story of Amleth, a supposed (but likely fictional) Viking prince most famous today as the basis for William Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

The Northman isn’t directly based on a true story, instead being written by Robert Eggers and his writing partner for this film Sjon, to be based on an Old Norse myth and folktale as opposed to being taken directly from reality.

This folktale was Vita Amlethi. Vita Amlethi was a tale passed down through generations by word of mouth, not being officially recorded until around the year 1200 as part of Saxo Grammaticus’ extensive history of Danish rulers and their history.

The basics of the story are what provided the inspiration for The Northman, as well as the basis for other famous stories throughout history, such as Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Vita Amlethi, the Norse folktale, translates into The Life of Amleth. While Amleth isn’t necessarily based on a true historical person, the folktale passes down the legend of the character.

While the story of The Northman takes the basis of this legend to inspire its story, the main character of Amleth is almost directly taken from the Norse tale. In Vita Amlethi, Amleth is a young Viking prince who lives happily with his father, Horwendil, and his mother, Gerutha.

Horwendil’s brother Fengo, however, is driven by a jealous hatred of his King Horwendil, and murders him, taking Gerutha as his own wife.

This drives Amleth into a life-long rage, vowing revenge against his uncle for the crimes committed against his family.

It’s unclear whether the character of Amleth is based on any kind of real events or people at the time, but either way, the figure is the basis of the main character of The Northman, played by Alexander Skarsgard.