As History Channel Vikings Season 2's finale came to an end last week, it became clear that Travis Fimmel's Ragnar Lothbrok was as much a Michael Corleone-esqe mastermind as his is a He-man skull crusher. With the historically based series proved that it can pull off such wild mind-games in the context of a primitive Norse power struggle, no wonder the transitioning network decided to renew for Season 3. Spoilers promise that Ragnar and his motley crew of invaders will unbelievably sack Paris next year. Perhaps even former slave Porunn, played by the perfect Gaia Weiss, will be able to move past her history of subjugation and rape to raid the rest of Europe alongside her Nobel boyfriend Bjorn and his famous father.
Vikings star Travis Fimmel explained to Time Magazine that he really just lucked into the part in an attempt to work with series creator:
"There'd been no show about Vikings that had been done really well, and Michael Hirst is mainly what attracted me to it, and I put myself on tape and sent it over there, and they were dumb enough to hire me."
"I think we have to up the game again, and Season 3 will certainly feature a very famous event which was their first Viking attack on Paris that Ragnar led. It's the most extraordinary episode.
"We've got over 100 ships in Season 3...they attack what they think is Rome. They go to Spain. They do extraordinary things."
If you wondering if Bjorn is going to be taking Porunn with him or if she'll fade away as her finds new ladies to feed him French wines and cheese, you shouldn't.
Gaia Weiss, who plays the recently freed slave girl, told BuffFocus that the character's arch needed time to evolve:
I think [creator, showrunner] Michael Hirst wanted to explore her experience and it's a different point of view.
"Even though she's only 20, but she's seen a lot, and she's probably already been raped at that young age."
"It's a complex and challenging role; I had a lot of questions about my character so it's nice to have Michael on set."
Long live Ragnar Lothbrok and the Vikings on the History Channel Network.
