Irish Abroad: Magnolia Pictures picks North American rights to Irish co-production The Last King

ScreenDaily is reporting that Magnolia Pictures has picked up North American rights to Irish-Norwegian co-production The Last King.

The film is set in medieval Norway and sees two warriors trek across snow-capped mountains to bring the last remaining heir to the throne to safety.

Oscar-nominated director Nils Gaup (Pathfinder) directs Jakob Oftebro (Kon-Tiki) and Kristofer Hivju (Game of Thrones), with Thorbjorn Harr (Vikings) and Pal Sverre Hagen (Kon-Tiki) co-starring.

Lesley McKimm co-produces for Irish based Newgrange Pictures (My Name is Emily), with Stein B. Kvae and Finn Gjerdrum producing for Norway’s Paradox Film 3 AS. The film is also co-produced by Nordisk Film and Proton Cinema+Theatre with funding from Norwegian Film Institute, Irish Film Board/Bord Scannán na hÉireann, and Eurimages.

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TrustNordisk made the deal with Magnolia, having brokered deals for Italy (Minerva Pictures Group), Czech Republic (Film Europe Media Company) Middle East (Gulf Film), India (Pictureworks), Estonia (Estinfilm), Germany, Austria and Switzerland (Koch Media).

The Last King will be released in Norway on February 12th.

The year is 1205. Norway is torn apart in a Civil war. With the help of the Birch Legs, the Norwegian King is fighting for survival against the Church’s Bishopsmen, who will use any means available to obtain victory. While the King is on his death bed, his only remaining heir is born in secrecy. A boy who half the Kingdom wants dead, but two men will sacrifice everything to protect. The two Birch Legs warriors Skjervald and Torstein set on a perilous journey through the harsh Norwegian winter landscape in order to rescue the two-year-old future king from a terrible fate.