White supremacists are touting Robert Eggers’ new Viking Hollywood blockbuster The Northman, starring Alexander Skarsgaurd and Nicole Kidman. Pulling from Viking history and Nordic mythology, the film features an all-white cast and plays into the “macho barbarian” stereotype, prompting white supremacists to voice their approval on Reddit and the anonymous message board site 4chan.
In this video, Mathias Nordvig, head of the Nordic Studies Program, explains how we’ve come to perceive Scandinavians as “bloodthirsty barbarians,” why white supremacy groups are drawn to these themes and how it impacts Nordic communities in the United States and abroad.
