It's been 20 years since Icelandic musician Björk won a Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival for her critically-acclaimed performance in the movie Dancer In the Dark. Finally, the artist is set to appear on the big screen once again in Robert Eggers' upcoming viking epic The Northman.
Björk joins stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Willem Dafoe, Ethan Hawke, and more. The Northman is the third film from Eggers, who previously directed The Witch and The Lighthouse. The movie follows Skarsgård’s viking prince Amleth, who embarks on a vengeful mission to defeat Claes Bang’s villainous Fjölnir in 10th Century Iceland.
Björk plays a witch in the film - the second time she's done so since her magical performance in The Juniper Tree (1990). Björk's daughter Isadora will also have a role to play in the film. More details about her role have yet to be revealed.
The news of Björk's casting in The Northman is interesting, considering the artist swore never to act again after her terrible experience working on Dancer In the Dark. In 2017, as part of the #MeToo movement, Björk revealed director Lars Von Trier's abusive treatment and sexual harassment towards her while working on the 2000 flick. Von Trier manipulated the musician into appearing in the film in the first place: Björk was only supposed to contribute music to the film, but Von Trier threatened to change the music if Björk did not play Selma in the film.
The Northman was set to start filming back in March 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic shut the production down for some time. It seems as though the shutdown forced Eggers to cast local Icelandic actors for smaller roles. Fortunately, Björk was in town and agreed to appear in Eggers' film.
Björk's decision to act again may have been partly influenced by the inclusion of a friend in the production. Eggers co-wrote The Northman with Icelandic poet and novelist Sjón, who is a longtime collaborator of Björk's. They have known each other since Björk's days of performing in The Sugarcubes in the 80s. He once appeared in the band as a vocalist. Since then, the pair have worked on several of Björk's songs, including "Jóga," "Cosmogony," "Oceania," and others.
In other Björk news, the musician recently wrapped her livestreamed orchestral shows, and is planning to bring her "Cornucopia" show to California in early 2022.
As for The Northman, the film is set for release April 8, 2022. It will be released by Universal in the U.K. and Focus Features in the U.S.
Watch the trailer below.
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Article Image: A still of Björk dressed as a witch in the trailer for "The Northman." (Focus Features via YouTube.)
