'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' on Netflix: Where was the historical drama filmed?

'Seven Kings Must Die' will conclude 'The Last Kingdom' saga and will be premiering exclusively on Netflix

PUBLISHED APR 14, 2023

Alexander Dreymon as Uhtred, Arnas Fedaravicius as Sihtric and Mark Rowley as Finan in 'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' (Netflix)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Historical dramas are always a treat to watch if done right. The massive scale of production, epic storylines, extraordinary characters, and superb background score make them a force to be reckoned with. One series that managed to nab the eyeballs was Netflix’s ‘The Last Kingdom’, a British historical fictional drama that focuses on the arrival of the Great Heathen Army and how their arrival redefined the relationship between Vikings and Anglo-Saxons. The series ended with five seasons, but to give proper closure to the story, Netflix is coming up with a feature film titled ‘The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die’.

If you are a fan of historical movies and TV shows, then you should definitely have ‘Transatlantic’, ‘Great Expectations’, and ‘Becoming Elizabeth’ on your watchlist.

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A still from 'The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die' (Netflix)

Coming back to the Netflix movies, ‘Seven Kings Must Die’ is based on ‘The Saxton Stories’ by Bernard Cornwell and serves as a sequel to ‘The Last Kingdom’. The film follows right after the death of King Edward. After his fall, invaders and rival heirs battle for the crown and it’s time for Uhtred (Alexander Dreymon) to embark on another journey with his comrades as they attempt to form a united England.

The world created in the series and the movie is pretty similar to what we see in epic historical titles and the creators did a wonderful job of picking places that could fit perfectly with the moody atmosphere. So, where is the upcoming movie filmed? Let’s take a look at the locations where the Netflix movie was shot.

Where is ‘The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die Filmed’?

Even though ‘The Last Kingdom’ is a British drama, the series was not actually filmed in the UK. Right before Season 5 hit Netflix, executive producer Nigel Marchant said they didn’t know what England looked like 1,000 years ago, so they shot somewhere else, and that somewhere is Hungary. The ‘Seven Kings Must Die’ follows the footsteps of its mother ship and has primarily been shot in Hungary as well.

Buda Castle is seem on January 17, 2019 in Budapest, Hungary. The Parliament building has become a site of growing protests over the past months. Over the past months thousands of Hungarians have turned out in the streets to call for the resignation of Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Orban was reelected for a third term in April 2018, since taking office Orban, has rebranded his ruling party Fidesz, once a liberal youth party, as a right-wing Christian nationalist organization. After the party’s victory in 2010, Orban moved to remake Hungary as what he termed “an illiberal state.” Since then, Orban has introduced many changes and new laws to realize this vision: the court system has been stacked with government loyalists; Orban’s allies have taken control of most Hungarian media; a new labor law - dubbed the “slave law” by critics - has increased the limit on overtime from 250hrs to 400hrs per year; the “Stop Soros” bill targeted NGOs and individuals assisting refugees and migrants; accreditation laws for foreign universities were changed, forcing the renowned Central European University to move most operations to Vienna; and a new homeless law that criminalizes sleeping on the streets. Mr. Orban’s moves have created a template for his brand of illiberal democracy, which is providing inspiration to far-right and populist leaders in Poland, Italy, France, Netherlands and Brazil. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

The principal photography for the upcoming historical film has been done in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary and there’s a reason why most of the production houses travel to Hungary for filming if they want to shoot in Europe. This landlocked country in Central Europe and its government actually provides a 30% tax incentive to foreign film productions. With this, the foreign production houses enjoy financial aid from the country, and Hungary profits from the tax they collect.

With the UK not being a part of the European Union anyone, British production houses might also be getting the same rebate.

Most of the filming for the movie happened in Budapest, but the external view of the famous castle of Bebbanburgh was shot at the Bamburgh Castle in Northumbria. The aforementioned place was an early medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom in what is now Northern England and Southeast Scotland.

Cricketers from Bamburgh Castle Cricket Club play at the foot of Bamburgh Castle on July 13, 2008 in Bamburgh, England.

What is ‘Seven Kings Must Die’ about?

The official synopsis reads, “For a century war has raged through the land between its inhabitants and the Danish invaders. But now peace has settled with the country nearly united – only Lord Uhtred of Bebbanburg, ruling over Northumbria, is yet to pledge his land to the throne. But when King Edward dies the peace is threatened as his two potential heirs, Aethelstan and Aelfweard, battle to claim the crown. When Uhtred hears that Aethelstan – once his ward and protégé ‐ is to fight, he rides to help him secure victory, but the young prince has fallen under a dark influence and is not the same boy Uhtred once knew. And when Aethelstan’s actions threaten the life Uhtred has known, Uhtred must decide where his loyalties lie – with the king, or with his homeland. Meanwhile, a new threat has reached these shores – the Danish Warrior‐King Anlaf has arrived, hoping to wreak chaos and use the discord for his own ends.”

Uhtred always wanted to unite the kingdom and this time he has a chance to ally with people and make that dream come true.