Michael
Hirst, creator and executive producer
Travis
Fimmel
Katheryn
Winnick
Alex
Ludwig
Clive
Standen
Jordan
Patrick Smith
Moderator
Kate Hahn
Katheryn:
It's a bummer that we can't see the fans this year.
Clive:
It was the highlight of my year each year. Remember the first year we didn't
think anyone would show up? That was the first moment where I realized there
was an audience for this.
Katheryn:
There were people waiting for hours just to get in. One of my favorite moments
was year two or three and I had to wear a mask and there where people dressed
in character and how invested they are in making their costumes. We know how
labor intensive those costumes are.
Travis
and Katheryn are in Valhalla since both Ragnar and Lagertha are gone from the
show.
Katheryn:
It is bittersweet being so long on the show. It was harder than I thought
seeing my death and watching her transition over. It was a bittersweet moment
in a lot of ways. It was sad to see it end. Michael wrote me such a great
death.
Michael:
It was over two amazing episodes and both you and Travis, these deaths were
brilliant and highly emotional, and no one will forget them.
Katheryn:
When I said 'in my dreams we are always together' was my audition line when I
auditioned for the part.
Alex:
It's like the environment of our show felt like such a family. I've yet to work
with such an incredible crew that was in synchronicity all the time. It was so
much fun.
Jordan:
I think that's what I enjoyed about the show, there was no hierarchy, it didn't
matter who you were working with, a grip or a producer, it was one big family
locked in together. You get to know everyone and their personal lives and
what's what I miss about the show.
Katheryn:
When you step away its crazy how you miss things. When you’re in the rain and
covered in blood you want to go home and when your home you want to go back to
Vikingland.
Alex:
Bjorn's greatest love? {spoiler alert}, he'll never be able to repeat it. After
Thoren kind of left, I think he kind of had written off everything. He used his
sexual exploits to self-medicate this feeling of never being good enough. I
think he saw so much with Lagertha and saw bits of her in other women that he
really connected with. I don't know if there is anything that came close to
that kind of forever in Valhalla kind of love.
Travis:
The goodbye scene with Geeta, it was written so beautifully, and I don't know
why it took three minutes for me to remember that scene. The best writing I can
memorize like that but other stuff that isn't quite as good I have a difficult
time memorizing lines.
Michael:
You don't have kids and I was writing literally thinking about a father talking
to a dead daughter and it became very powerful and meaningful to me. From the
start it seemed very meaningful to you to. That's what really struck me that it
was very interesting and fascinating like a moment cut out of time. It’s a very
simple scene but very emotional and I felt you were totally inside the scene
and I was aware of that.
Clive:
I think everything Rollo does is justified from his point of view. When they
first agree to go west together, they agree to be equal but in Rollo's eyes
some are more equal than others. When Ragnar becomes an Earl, I think that's
the start of it, it gnaws at him. He always feels in the shadow. In Paris he
stays in the winter camp, it wasn't Ragnar's, he took Paris first and took it
before Ragnar could get their first.
Michael:
The fight in Paris was intense.
Clive:
The stunt team came up with a fantastic fight, it was all swords. It was a
beautiful fight. It had to be between the brothers, and we arranged to get rid
of the swords as quick as possible and just hit each other. I think its brutal
and tragic when you watch it but Travis said let’s make this as simple as
possible and have the brothers just go at it. It's really hard to watch.
Travis:
For the character, even to that very moment he was hoping that Rollo wouldn't
fight him back. Maybe there was a glimmer of hope that his brother wouldn't
betray him. When it did it devastated his world and it was the end of his
drive. I think he really regretted his life and just wanted to be back home and
wished he never went against the Earl. He was sort of broken. I think breaking
with Lagertha was the climb to power as well, it broke his heart and he always
had hope for that. I think it was the first time in his whole life that he lost
hope and he had to get away. I think at the end, after that, he decided that he
couldn't go out like that. Michael wrote such a great ending and it was a bit
of the old Ragnar. It wasn't written good with a great arc. Being in a show
that we could age as well, there aren't many shows where you could do that.
Jordan:
I remember my first day on set because Travis slapped me on the face five
times. It was big shoes to fill and I walked down the hill the first day and I
was told not to mess it up. It was the first time in Ireland together and
everyone was so welcome. Like the scene where Travis smacks me in the face he
kept doing it and doing it and doing it. My ear was ringing for days after
that, it definitely was a Viking introduction. I studied Travis to start with,
I noticed that if you've got a big character in your family you have some
characteristics. Michael wrote part of Ragnar's personality to each of the
brothers. I watched how he held his head and such things you take from your dad
over the years. I think my characters curiosity is part of Ragnar but he's
thinking about the people and where the world is going in the future and where
he fits in that. In the second half of season six, Michael wrapped it up really
well. The way he has written it the family dynamic is involved and my character
goes on an incredible journey. I don’t' want to say anymore.
Michael:
The big decision to kill Ragnar obviously when I first wrote the outline, he
actually died at the end of season one and making it I realized we were only on
the start of his journey. There were plenty of doom-laden warnings to kill off
your major character will damage the show and it was a risk. Travis had such a
huge reputation, but I sold the show on the bases that this was about Ragnar
and his sons. This show also allowed the show for these characters to grow up
and there were children and animals in it as well. I just stuck to that. What
actually happened was that Ragnar continued to be a presence in the rest of the
show. He never really went away. So it wasn't a huge risk after all. It was
great to see these young actors as well coming along and taking their chance
and Alex being a conduit between them. Alex was in the show for the longest and
the show in the sense is about his character if anyone else. Everyone involves
into their character and into their fate was an important part and experience
of the show.
Katheryn:
One of my favorite fights scene is the first one where Lagertha is at home and
these two guys come in and she grabs the poke from the fire and fights them
off. Another would be that Ragnar tells her not to go raiding and they have a
bit of a lover’s quarrel.
Alex:
Your last fight scene was tremendous.
Katheryn:
It was emotionally exhausting 100% and most emotionally draining.
Michael:
It was absolutely brilliant and difficult to watch. I don't believe anyone who
was watching that really thought you could win. There was something in your
eyes at a certain point where you, for the first time thought you wouldn't
survive that fight. It was beautifully done but it was really tough to watch,
very emotional. The very first one, we didn't cast Vikings in the conventional
way, we took a chance on both you and Travis. People pay a lot of money who
pays for these things get jittery if you've made the right decision. In terms
of you and your performance, all those jitters and anxiety went away, melted
away as soon as the guys in suits saw that scene dealing with those robbers.
Jordan:
The battle scene in season five, yea, its all about the story. Fighting always
have an underlying story. That fight was Ubbe willing to hand over his life.
That took six weeks to rehearse and it was physically draining for me. The
stunt guys put to much effort and personal time as well into the choreography
and created a story through the whole thing.
Michael:
That was one of the reasons I liked one particular battle scene, a battle isn't
one event. It's hundred of thousands of events coming together. Each person has
a battle in a different way. We would cut back to their memories, their own
battles and something happened to the lead characters. Each individual was
having their own intense experience. I think the audience found that confusing
but that's part of the principle I'm working on. It’s a story of these
individual people and having their individual experiences all the time.
Alex:
For me the one that stands out is the end of Season Five when they've lost, and
he is outside the gates. Michael wrote an amazing speech where he pleads with
his friends and neighbors and it's heartbreaking. Credit to everyone making
that because I lost my voice screaming the day and the day before and we were
trying to crash down the gate. I had no voice by the time of the speech. When
sound is messed up you have to re-record it. We thought we should keep it the
way it was because it was so heartbreaking seeing how much he's given and on
his last leg. It was a huge moment for the show and I'm proud to be part of
that.
Michael:
Honestly, Alex and Travis before, all of you, I was blessed to have such an
intelligent cast. These are deeply thoughtful people and actors and its not
always true. So, they excavated their characters to an extraordinary degree and
makes me feel extraordinarily proud.
Alex:
I think I speak for everyone when we say how lucky we are to have story time,
dinner with Michael was story time. He is so incredibly talented and so willing
to dive into the character with you.
Katheryn:
We are spoiled because we have the best show running out there because we feel
like we are building the character with him. We are so invested and with
Michael with how warm and thoughtful your minds words and add that to our
characters. After six season we wouldn't be here without you, the godfather of
it all is you Michael.
Clive:
I don't know how you could take any more, you were like a sponge. You listened
to all my crazy ideas and sometimes they ended up in the script and you threw
away the crap ones. I never had that experience again where the showrunner
listened to what I had to say.
Michael:
I took on board concerns and things and one of the most radical ideas was
Travis' we would have a meeting before and we were going to discuss the last
episode of season two and Travis said 'do you think that perhaps it would be a
good idea if I don't say anything in this episode accept the lord's prayer?',
and it was a radical idea. I went away and looked at the script and thought
other people could say those words and it was a cool idea and may get away with
it. I told him, 'don't tell anyone' because no one would allow it. Your lead
character is not saying what's on the page? So, we did it and I don't think
anyone noticed, no one noticed he didn't say anything because he was still in
the scene and because he has such a presence they thought he had said
something.
Clive:
I remember there was a day for some reason we were doing a scene and one of the
Vikings was to be beheaded on a block. They set it up and we said, 'no Vikings
wouldn't do that' and I remember the director said 'its just a t.v. show' and I
remember we all went 'not to us it isn't'. It was a polite argument, but we
wanted to make it different because we care about these people.
Katheryn:
I think it was all living away from home and living in Dublin making friends
into family and make us bond quicker and it is evidence on camera.
Alex:
Yea, we probably won't be allowed back.
