Inspired by the Westfjords of Iceland in the 1800s, The Damned takes place in an unforgiving, almost unliveable setting, yet one that is steeped in immense beauty and turbulent folklore
For director Thordur Palsson. The Valhalla Murders, himself a native Icelander, it was this folklore and mythology that led him to develop the idea that would later become The Damned. Growing up in Iceland, family members would often share gruesome tales of ghosts, demons and evil spirits.
As he recalls:‘Every Icelander has heard all kinds of different variations of the truth – all elements of our history that have been passed down. One of these stories was about a ship that sank off the shores of Iceland, with all survivors being killed by the natives. Having known of this, I started to write a story relating to it and kept fleshing it out, adding darker elements.’
Rooted in the depths of Norse Mythology, The Damned features haunting performances from Rory McCann (Game of Thrones), Siobhan Finneran (Happy Valley), Turlough Convery (Belfast), Lewis Gribben (Somewhere Boy), Francis Magee (The Tourist) and Mícheál Óg Lane (Calvary).