4 Norse Myths That Inspired Cinema

Norse mythology comprises the stories and legends of the ancient Norse people who existed in Scandinavia between the 8th and 11th centuries. Their tales are preserved in ancient Icelandic texts such as the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda from the 13th century. Yet their influence pre-dates their transcription. The popularity of the Norse myths, however, really took off some thousand years later. In the 1800s, the myths spread throughout Europe with many artists beginning to reference them in their work. Today, they are still bewitching cinema audiences worldwide.

In Norse mythology, Thor was the God of Thunder, a fierce yet benevolent deity who made it his life’s mission to hunt down giants and protect mankind. He was characterized by his otherworldly strength, and his magic hammer named Mjǫllnir. As one of the most adventurous members of the Norse pantheon Thor was involved in many myths but perhaps one of the most famous is the story of how he came to acquire his prized weapon.

Thor’s wife was the beautiful goddess of fertility, Sif. One day, the trickster God, Loki came and cut off all of her golden hair. Furious, Thor confronted Loki who placated him by traveling to Svartalfheim, the home of the dwarves. There, Loki asked the master craftsmen to fashion some new hair for Sif as well as a powerful spear, and an unbreakable ship. Very pleased with himself, Loki then came up with a genius idea. He went to some rival dwarves and bet them that they couldn’t create anything as good as what he had already received. Needless to say, he came back with a further three masterworks, one of which was the hammer Mjǫllnir. No other God was strong enough to wield this hammer and so Thor took it for his own.

Thor is probably the most recognizable member of the Norse pantheon due to his infamy as a Marvel superhero. Thor first appeared during the silver age of comic books, when Marvel creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby introduced him as a recurring character. One year later, he appeared as a founding member of The Avengers, a group of superheroes who work together to save the world.

Thor’s comic book popularity has made him one of the longest-running superheroes of all time. As such, he has appeared in eleven films within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Portrayed by Chris Hemsworth, he differs somewhat from the mythological Thor who is not always taken seriously. As a superhero, he takes his duty to mankind very seriously and is a mature and erudite ambassador for masculinity.

If you’ve heard of Thor you’ve likely heard of Loki. This cunning trickster was introduced alongside Thor in the Marvel comic series as his brother and main antagonist and has subsequently enjoyed a run as one of the most popular villains of all time. Just like Thor, however, the Loki of popular culture has some distinct differences from his mythological counterpart.

In Norse mythology, Loki was a troublemaking shapeshifter, descended from Giants and therefore not related to Thor as the MCU would have us believe. His mischief-making provided fodder for numerous stories in the Poetic Edda such as the time that he transformed himself into a salmon to avoid the wrath of the Gods after insulting them all at a great feast. Or when he told the God, Odin, of his wife’s adulterous relations with some dwarves in order to spark an endless war.

However, as much as his scheming wit gets him into trouble, in the original myths he is ultimately an ambiguous figure who does, sometimes, act in the interest of the greater good. An example of this is when Thor’s hammer was stolen by Thrym, a God of Jötunheimr, which was one of the nine Norse kingdoms. Loki made it his mission to discover the whereabouts of the missing weapon and eventually tracked it down to Jötunheimr.

Upon speaking to Thrym, he learned his price for its return: The God Freya’s hand in marriage. Loki delivered this message to the Gods who came up with a plan. Thor should dress as Freya and travel to Jötunheimr himself. Initially, Thor was reluctant to do so, but Loki strongly advised him to go. Loki’s counsel is what ultimately saved the day for the plan worked and Thor successfully retrieved his hammer, slaying Thrym and all of his court.

In the Marvel films, Loki is similarly multifaceted. Portrayed by Tom Hiddleston across seven films, his love-hate relationship with Thor has created gripping storylines, eventually leading to his own live-action series, appropriately titled Loki. Whilst starting out in the MCU film franchise as Thor’s main antagonist, over time, Loki has showcased anti-hero tendencies, even joining forces with Thor in Thor: The Dark World (2013).

But Loki’s influence extends beyond the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He also inspired Chuck Russell’s 1994 film, The Mask, starring Jim Carrey. In this film, everything changes for timid bank clerk Stanley Ipkiss (played by Carrey) when he discovers a mysterious wooden mask that contains the spirit of Loki. This mask comes alive at nighttime, transforming him into a supernatural charmer who finds himself in all kinds of crazy trouble under Loki’s influence.

Another Norse God who appears quite frequently on the silver screen is Odin, albeit in more subtle ways than that of his son, Thor, and the trickster, Loki. In Norse mythology, Odin is the father of all gods, renowned for his wisdom and poetic tongue. He was said to hold court in the hall of Valhalla though he was scarcely found there, preferring instead to wander around in the disguise of an old traveler.

In the Norse myths, Odin was depicted as desiring knowledge above all else and many stories cover his pursuit of wisdom. In the most famous of these tales, Odin traded one of his eyes in exchange for divine perception. In this myth, Odin plucks his eye out and casts it into the well of knowledge belonging to Mimir, the wisest of the Gods. As a result of this offering, Odin was allowed to drink from the well and so he too became privy to its secrets.

The most famous characterization of Odin in popular culture is the character of Gandalf in J.R.R Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings saga who appears in six films directed by Peter Jackson. Gandalf shares many traits with the Norse deity, the most obvious being his appearance as a wizened traveler. In the Norse myths, Odin is often described as donning a gray cloak and floppy hat with a staff in hand, just like Gandalf.

There are also similarities between their respective storylines. For example in the Norse tale of Sigurd the Dragon Slayer, Odin comes to help Sigurd on three separate occasions, setting Sigurd’s adventure in motion but disappearing for long spells in between. His presence as a wise leader who prepares the hero for the tasks ahead and crops up when needed most mirrors Gandalf’s role in The Lord of The Rings.

This wise old wizard character trope appears in countless books and films, most notably Dumbledore in the Harry Potter series and Merlin in The Legend of King Arthur. These characters could be attributed to the lore of Odin as they too share many similarities with him. However, it is Tolkien’s fascination with Norse mythology that provides solid evidence that Gandalf is Odin reimagined.

One of Tolkien’s areas of expertise was the poem Beowulf and he kept up his passion for the Norse myths during his tenure as a Professor of Literature at Oxford, where he focused much of his time on the Germanic languages. He even founded a club alongside his friend and fellow author, C.S Lewis, which was dedicated to reading, translating, and discussing the Icelandic sagas in the original language. It is perhaps unsurprising then, to learn that Gandalf’s name appears in the Poetic Edda, alongside the name of every single dwarf featured in The Hobbit.

Odin’s influence can also be felt in Nicolas Winding Refn’s 2009 film, Valhalla Rising, where a one-eyed Mads Mikkelsen travels across the land in search of the holy land. During his crusade, his character experiences flashes of great insight in the form of visions. His depiction as a cycloptic, insightful, traveler draws heavily from the characteristics of Odin in Norse mythology.

Tolkien’s fascination with Norse mythology didn’t just stop at Gandalf. In fact, the whole basis of The Lord of The Rings comes directly from Norse mythology. Tolkien’s concept for the ring of power comes from Andvaranaut, a ring in the Norse myths that could purportedly create gold but was said to leave the wearer stricken with grief and unhappiness. This ring features heavily in the Saga of the Völsungs, a collection of myths that chart the demise of a family through several generations.

In the Norse myths, Andvaranaut was owned by a dwarf named Andvari who used it to create great wealth for himself. One day, Loki accidentally killed Ótr and was captured by his Father who demanded reparations in gold. Loki went to see Andvari and demanded that he give him all of the gold in his possession. Andvari obliged but just as Loki was turning away, he spied a little gold ring. Andvari pleaded with Loki not to take it but Loki was insistent. At that moment, Andvari cursed the ring, stating that it “should be the ruin of every one who should come into possession of it.” This set a long and bloody chain of events in motion, where the ring left a path of destruction in its wake. Yet people still sought it out, for its promise of gold and power.

Does that sound familiar? That’s because it went on to serve as the inspiration for one of the highest-grossing film franchises of all time, placing Norse mythology firmly in the public consciousness. Though not a direct re-telling of Norse mythology by any means, The Lord of the Rings franchise is deeply indebted to the ancient tales from Scandinavia.