Vikings land Down Under!
Gemma Laurelle and Andrew Lutomski will star in the upcoming comedy series, Vikings Now. The brainchild of Gemma, Vikings Now charts the disastrous adventures of 3 Vikings banished by Odin to modern-day Australia as punishment for their epic mistakes. The trio meet a friendly Aussie, who takes them in as housemates. Currently the series is in development, with a pitch trailer released in 2019.
“The idea came to me over 5 years ago, when I realised I didn't seem to fit the mould of many female roles being cast in Australia. I am not petite, I have muscles, I would accidentally break props during auditions, and the idea dropped in of how modern city-dwellers would probably s--t their pants if warriors lived amongst them.”, Gemma said.
Lutomski, also known as Chris Hemsworth’s look-alike, has a substantial following as his cosplay persona ‘Thor of Oz’ and plays the role of Steiner. Gemma plays Ingrid, a disgraced Valkyrie with no sense of moderation, with Lutomski as Steiner, the stable, logical Viking and moral compass. Other cast in the trailer include Sean Gill, Lewis Scamozzi and Johnny Sumelj. The domestic comedy will showcase Viking garb authentically designed and crafted by Australian costume designer Peita Breese.
The character-driven series explores the issues of societal expectations, political correctness and modern day sensitivities with a robust fish-out-of-water wit. Comedian and writer, Tim Ferguson is on board as script consultant and is keen to support content creation in Australia.
Inspired by the works of Taika Waititi and the unguarded humour of New Zealand and Australia, Gemma is keen to help build industry Down Under and work with unearthed talent. “The grass is greener where you water it, right?"
