With the end of The Last Kingdom on Netflix, the epic finale to the story of Uhtred of Bebbanburg will be told through the movie, Seven Kings Must Die.
Seven Kings Must Die will continue the story of The Last Kingdom, following the tales of Uhtred of Bebbanburg. In this 2-hour-long sequel, Uhtred will adventure once more with his comrades across the scattered kingdom in a bid to form a united England after the death of King Edward as invaders and rival heirs battle for the crown. Seven Kings Must Die will feature returning series characters to battle alongside Uhtred played by Alexander Dreymon. The new images feature Uhtred, his allies, and his rivals as they prepare for battle. Dreymon revealed the news about the production of Seven Kings Must Die at London MCM Comic-Con in 2021.
Netflix picked up The Last Kingdom from the BBC after the latter canceled the show after two seasons. The streaming service had already been working with the BBC on the show, as outside of the UK, The Last Kingdom was already distributed as a Netflix Original. Three further incredible seasons were produced, and with the film on the way in the near future, we’ll get to see a dramatic and epic conclusion to the story of Uhtred of Bebbanburg.
The Plot
The Last Kingdom is based on Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon Stories. It is set around the year 866, following the Great Heathen Army’s arrival in Britain and the Kingdom of Wessex’s continued resistance against Viking attacks, centers around Uhtred, a warrior born to a Saxon lord, but raised by a Danish warlord after he was kidnapped as a child. The series came to an end after the fifth season, but the story continues in Seven Kings Must Die.
A synopsis for Seven Kings Must Die hasn’t been revealed as of yet, however, we can expect the following:
After successfully reclaiming his ancestral home of Bebbanburg, and in order for Uhtred to keep the peace, the Saxon-Dane promised to remain independent of any war between King Constantin of Alba and King Edward of Wessex. But an independent Bebbanburg means Edward’s dream of a unified England remains in doubt. So will another Wessex king go against his word and betray Uhtred? All Uhtred dreams of is to live out his days in Bebbanburg in peace, but fate may have ulterior motives, and once again Uhtred will be at the heart of shaping the future of England.
Who are the cast members of Seven Kings Must Die?
In the press release for Seven Kings Must Die it was confirmed that Alexander Dreymon would return to reprise his role as Uhtred of Bebbanburg. It was also confirmed that multiple characters from the show will return to reprise their roles, along with some new faces who are yet to be announced.
We expect to see the following cast members to return:
- Uhtred – Alexander Dreymon
- Young Uhtred – Finn Elliot
- Stiorra – Ruby Hartley
- Osbert – Olly Rhodes
- King Edward – Timothy Innes
- King Constantin – Rod Hallett
- Eadgifu – Sonya Cassidy
- Aethelstan – Harry Gilby
- Aelfweard – Ewan Horrocks
- Finan – Mark Rowley
- Sihtric – Arnas Fedaravicius
- Father Pyrlig – Cavan Clerkin
- Aelswith – Eliza Butterworth
- Aelfwynn – Phia Saban
- Lady Eadith – Stefanie Martini
- Abbess Hild – Eva Birthistle
- Father Benedict – Patrick Robinson
- Cynlaef – Ryan Quarmby
The movie will be directed by Ed Bazalgette and written by Martha Hillier. Producers are Nigel Marchant, Gareth Neame, and Mat Chaplin. Seven Kings Must Die is produced by Carnival Films, a part of Universal International Studios. Dreymon who executive produced The Last Kingdom will return as an executive producer for Seven Kings Must Die alongside Hillier. Speaking about the movie, Dreymon said it was an honor to be a part of the series and the movie, adding the following to say about his time spent playing the role of Uhtred;
It has been such an honor to be part of telling this story for all these years. As an actor, I have been so challenged and gratified by the privilege of playing Uhtred. Hanging up Uhtred’s sword after filming ‘Seven Kings’ felt, ironically, heavy – even though I know that our tale has reached its conclusion. As an EP on the show, I could not be more proud of the hundreds of people who spent thousands of hours to make the best product possible. As for our loyal fans…what can I say? You are the reason we’ve reached this point and got to bring our saga to the end. This, as it always has been, is for you.
When is the Netflix release date for Seven Kings Must Die?
It has been revealed that Seven Kings Must Die will be released on Netflix on April 14th, 2023.
A trailer for the movie has yet to be released, but we expect to see one extremely soon.
What is the production status of Seven Kings Must Die?
Official Production Status: Post-Production (Last Updated: 11/01/2023)
At the end of January 2022, a tweet from the official The Last Kingdom Twitter account confirmed that filming is currently ongoing in Hungary for Seven Kings Must Die.
Filming then took place for three months with the production wrapping on March 19th, 2022. Filming between season 1 and the movie took place over 663 days in total.
