What is 'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' based on? Netflix film concludes 'The Last Kingdom' saga
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Stories based on the historical novels are not always interesting. Only a few shows have managed to keep history rivetting as the broad 'plot' is already known and there are no surprises. The critically acclaimed series like 'Game of Thrones' and its recent spin-off, 'House of the Dragon' are popular because it is fantasy inspired from actual power struggles in Europe among "houses" or aristocratic families but not a re-telling of the actual events that transpired.
However, Netflix has a hidden gem of a series called 'The Last Kingdom,' which is based on historical fiction. And now, the streaming platform is gearing up to release the movie 'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die.' The upcoming 'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' is a direct sequel to the television series 'The Last Kingdom' and will serve as the conclusion to this sprawling saga of how England came into existence as a united country with a Christian King. The upcoming Netflix film stars Alexander Dreymon as Uhtred, Elaine Cassidy as Queen Eadgifu, Mark Rowley as Finan, Cavan Clerkin as Pyrlig, Arnas Fedaravicius as Sihtric, Harry Gilby as Aethelstan and Ewan Horrocks as Aelfweard.
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What is 'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' based on?
'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' is based on a series of historical novels written by Bernard Cornwell. Commonly known as 'The Saxon Stories,' the series consists of a total of 13 novels and narrates the story of Britain during the ninth and tenth centuries. According to Cornwell, he wanted to choose the Anglo-Saxon age to be the center plot of his story because he was drawn towards the mostly melancholy age and wanted to tell the story of the beginning of England in his work.
An interesting fact to be noted is that Cornwell himself is an actual descendant of the Saxons. His ancestors were the owners of what is now Bamburgh Castle. And the protagonist of Cornwell's novels came from Uhtred, an actual historical figure with little information, with whom Cornwell is connected to in real life through his family tree. This served as a catalyst for Cornwell to make Uhtred the protagonist of his novel series.
The novel series follows the story of Uhtred, the second son of a Saxon lord, who rules a part of the kingdom of Northumbria called Bebbanburg. When the Danish forces attacked, the first brother and father of Uhtred were killed. Uhtred is the sole survivor of his family who is spared by Ragnar, the leader of the Danish. Ragnar raises Uhtred as his own son, and as the story follows, we are able to witness some of the real-life historical figures like Alfred the Great. Throughout the series, Uhtred is seen fighting to reclaim his land on Bebbanburg, which is currently ruled by his cunning uncle. The first part of 'The Saxon Stories' was published in 2004 titled 'The Last Kingdom' and the final part of the historical fiction series was published in 2020 titled, 'War Lord.'
What is the connection with 'The Last Kingdom'?
'The Last Kingdom' is a television series that aired from 2015 to 2022 with a total of five seasons. When the first two seasons of the series aired on BBC Two, the rest of the series went on to air on Netflix. Though the historical drama has taken its story from 'The Saxon Stories,' several of the plot points were changed for the television series. However, much of the original material was retained for the show. Multiple books were taken as inspiration for a single season of the show. The first season of 'The Last Kingdom' is taken from the first two novels, titled 'The Last Kingdom' and 'The Pale Horseman.' Season 2 took its plot from 'The Lords of the North' and 'Sword Song,' the third and fourth parts of the series. Season 3, followed the same pattern and followed the plotlines from books five and six, titled, 'The Burning Land' and 'Death of Kings.' Season 4 of 'The Last Kingdom' was based on 'The Pagan Lord' (Book Seven) and 'The Empty Throne' (Book Eight). However, the final season of 'The Last Kingdom' followed the ninth, tenth and thirteenth of the series which were 'Warriors of the Storm,' 'The Flame Bearer' and 'War Lord.'
What is 'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' about?
'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' is set to take place after the death of King Edward. Edward's sons, Aethelstan and Aelfweard, both fight to claim the throne. As Aethelstan was once a ward of Uhtred, he sets off to help him fight. But his ward, consumed by dark influences, puts Uhtred's life in danger. It is to be noted that Uhtred is now ruling Northumbria. The official logline for the upcoming movie on Netflix reads, "In the wake of King Edward's death, Uhtred of Bebbanburg and his comrades adventure across a fractured kingdom in the hopes of uniting England at last."
'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' is set to premiere exclusively on Netflix on April 14, 2023.