On top of watching television shows unfold, there is another thing about the viewing experience that many fans enjoy. That would be creating fan theories about how a series' plots will unfold. When discussing fan theories, Vikings' Alexander Ludwig, who plays Bjorn, weighed in with his thoughts on them. Ludwig said:
I don't if people give fans enough credit sometimes because I think that their theories and everything actually influence, the way that a show is written. By the way, it goes.
Alexander Ludwig shared his fan theory thoughts with ET, before weighing in on some of Vikings' best. What he shared is some pretty significant praise! To suggest they could potentially influence shows is another intriguing point. It certainly makes sense. If a fan were to hit on a correct theory, well before a big reveal takes place on-screen, it could be a game-changer.
Whether shows take a correct theory so seriously that they change a plot's outcome is an exciting thing to contemplate. In the Season 5B premiere of Vikings, fans, including this one, finally got the answer to a long-circulating theory. That theory involved Rollo and Bjorn being biological father and son. In the midseason opener, Rollo confronted Lagertha and his believed-to-be-nephew with his assertion.
Clive Standen revealed that the revelation regarding Bjorn's paternity had been a long time in the making. He also pointed out that observant Vikings fans were likely to notice the signals. So, could fans be right about other things? There is another fan theory that involves Rollo and the paternity of another of his nephews.
A few months ago, Reddit user LordTryhard suggested that Rollo also fathered Ivar. They point out the purposeful physical resemblance between the characters as furthered by casting, among other reasons, including Rollo's motivation to back Ivar.
That mystery may have already been resolved with the Bjorn reveal. If the Ivar/Rollo theory turns out to be true, Rollo never showed the amount of affection he did for Lagertha to Aslaug. So, we will all just have to wait and see if this comes to fruition. One secret maybe-son may be all Vikings needs.
Following up on his co-star's fan theory comments, Alex Høgh Andersen, who plays Ivar the Boneless on the History series, weighed in. He went a step further in his praise for fan theories. Andersen said:
Some of them are better than what's written. I didn't say that obviously.
Given the rise of fan fiction and theories being covered by online pubs, fans are not backing down from sharing about their favorite shows. With so many eyes on a TV show, fans are bound to hit on something in the mind's eye of a series' creator. Whether Vikings ends up bringing more fan theories to fruition will be fun to find out.
The show has no absolute limits to where it can go, and fans are understandably anxious surrounding the fate of Lagertha. Whether she can survive the second half of Season 5 certainly has this viewer on edge.
See what else Vikings' creator Michael Hirst has up his sleeve when the second half of the season continues. New episodes of Vikings Season 5B air Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on History. The show is among many returning this fall and during the midseason.
