Started February 25, 2022 · Ended · Based on 3 seasons, 24 episodes through July 11, 2024 · TV-MA
Vikings: Valhalla is a Netflix historical action drama that follows real legendary figures including Leif Erikson, his sister Freydis Eiriksdottir, and Harald Sigurdsson in the early 11th century during the final years of the Viking Age. The story covers Viking raids on England, the spread of Christianity, internal pagan-Christian conflicts among the Norse, political power struggles, and Leif’s explorations westward. One clear audience-visible element is the prominent casting of a black actress as the powerful Jarl Estrid Haakon, complete with a fictional backstory of African ancestry that many viewers flagged as a deliberate diversity choice in a story otherwise rooted in European history.
Community feedback
Was our 55% Woke rating accurate?
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Vikings: Valhalla.
Woke representation / casting
Prominent role given to a black actress as Jarl Estrid Haakon with an added African-ancestry backstory; this stands out as audience-visible diversity casting in a Viking-Age European setting and directly fueled public debate over historical accuracy versus representation priorities.
52%
Woke political dialogue
All dialogue and conflicts remain grounded in 11th-century religious, political, and revenge-driven tensions with zero modern activist speeches, identity lectures, or contemporary social-justice framing.
8%
Identity-driven story themes
Story centers on historical exploration, faith clashes, and ambition among legendary figures; strong female warrior arcs exist but follow established Viking lore rather than modern identity politics.
12%
Western institutional / cultural critique
Christianization is shown changing Norse traditions and English rulers betray Vikings, presented strictly as period events without any overlay of anti-Western, anti-patriarchy, or systemic critiques common in activist storytelling.
15%
Woke character or canon changes
Jarl Estrid Haakon is loosely based on a historical Norwegian ruler but reimagined as a black woman with invented African heritage; this alteration was widely discussed as a diversity-driven deviation rather than neutral adaptation.
55%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Clear and repeated viewer and reviewer complaints across platforms specifically accuse the production of woke casting choices and historical revision for DEI reasons, focused on the Jarl role and other visible diversity elements.
48%
Creator track record context
Primary creators Jeb Stuart and Michael Hirst maintain long careers in straightforward historical drama and action with no public activist statements, DEI-focused projects, or identity-politics patterns.
12%
Production
TV Show · 2016
In 18th-century North America, ruthless trappers and entrepreneurs fight to wrest control of the fur trade from the mighty Hudson's Bay Company.
TV Show · 2022
Dan Chase absconded from the CIA decades ago and now lives off the grid. When an assassin arrives and tries to take Chase out, the old operative learns that to ensure his future…
TV Show · 2022
An MI6 deputy's bright future takes a sharp turn after a reunion with a Russian spy forces him to question his entire life.
TV Show · 2022
Navy SEAL Commander James Reece turns to vengeance as he investigates the mysterious forces behind the murder of his entire platoon.
TV Show · 2019
In this gritty and sometimes bloody tale, sixteen year-old Wayne sets out on a dirt bike with his new crush Del to take back the 1978 Pontiac Trans Am that was stolen from his…
TV Show · 2018
When CIA analyst Jack Ryan stumbles upon a suspicious series of bank transfers his search for answers pulls him from the safety of his desk job and catapults him into a deadly…
TV Show · 2022
With the aid of unexpected friends, a gifted but introverted student confronts bullies and violent foes — unaware of how dangerous his world will become.
TV Show · 2022
Escaped convict Lin Ford flees to the teeming streets of 1980s Bombay, looking to disappear. Working as a medic for the city's poor and neglected, Lin finds unexpected love…
