‘Glee’ actress Jessalyn Gilsig has been cast as Gabriel Byrne’s wife in upcoming mini-series ‘Vikings’, due to begin filming in Wicklow in two weeks.
Canadian actress Gilsig, best known for playing Matthew Morrison’s (Will Schuester) wife in musical comedy ‘Glee’, will play Siggy, the wife of Earl Haraldson (played by Byrne), a former warrior and chieftain of the Vikings.
Gilsig will touch down on Irish soil with fellow cast member Travis Fimmel, who will play the character of Ragnar Lothbrook, as exclusively revealed on IFTN yesterday. Viewers will see Siggy’s loyalty to her husband wane, as Ragnar threatens Haraldson’s position in an attempt to become King of the Vikings.
Gustaf Skarsgard, who starred alongside Irish actors Colin Farrell and Saoirse Ronan in ‘The Way Back’; has also been cast as Floki, a close associate of Ragnor. Clive Standen, who featured in Irish-based series ‘Camelot’; will play a cousin of Ragnar, and ‘Bones’ actress Katheryn Winnick will play Ragnar’s first wife.
‘The Tudors’ creator Michael Hirst has also created ‘Vikings’, which is being produced by Ireland’s World 2000 Productions and Toronto-based Take 5 Productions. The nine-part series will be the first major production to take place at the newly built Ashford Studios in Ballyhenry in Co. Wicklow.
All five newly cast leads, along with Byrne, will begin principal photography at the studio in the second week in July. The History Channel will air the series in 2013, in what will be the channel’s first ever scripted series.
