James Norton looks completely unrecognisable in the first look photos of the upcoming historical epic drama King & Conqueror coming to the BBC in 2025 - and we don't know about you, but we can't wait!
The eight-part series, which also stars Game of Thrones star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, 1899's Emily Beecham and Harry Potter actress Clémence Poésy, the story follows the events that led up to the famous Battle of Hastings in 1066.
The Happy Valley star is set to play Harold of Wessex, while Nikolaj takes on William of Normandy in "the story of a clash that defined the future of a country – and a continent – for a thousand years", as the pair are described as "two allies with no design on the British throne, who found themselves forced by circumstance and personal obsession into a war for possession of its crown".
© LiljaJonsThere is also a very impressive supporting cast, including Eddie Marsan as King Edward, Juliet Stevenson as Lady Emma, Jean-Marc Barr as King Henry, Luther Ford as Tostig, Geoff Bell as Godwin and Elliott Cowan as Sweyn.
James is having a very busy time at the moment. Following his smash hit theatre run starring in A Little Life, the actor starred in the new Netflix movie Joy, which follows the pioneers of IVF, as well as the upcoming ITV drama Playing Nice, which follows James as a father shocked when he is told that his son was switched at birth, and the child that he is raising isn't biologically his.
© LiljaJonsThe historical drama will come after the BBC's huge success with Wolf Hall, with the second and final season airing ten years after the original. Following Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell, the show takes place several centuries after the Battle of Hastings in the court of King Henry VIII, as his right hand man Thomas must avoid being outmanoeuvred in a terrififying political landscape where a misstep could mean death.
Speaking about Cromwell's downfall, which is set to be portrayed in season two, Mark said: "I think he gets tired and there are times when he fantasises for a different life. He’s always aware that something bad could happen.
© LiljaJons"You are reaping great benefits, great wealth, but you are dealing with people who are trying to put a knife in your back. You’re dealing with a very violent regime that is sustained by violence. And you are an agent of that regime."
King & Conqueror will premiere on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in 2025
