Who Is ‘The Green Knight’? Watch A Brief Oral History Of The Arthurian Legend
A24 is finally bringing their fantasy epicThe Green Knightto theaters later this summer. It’s been sitting on a shelf for awhile now due to the coronavirus pandemic, but thankfully, the studio decided to hold it back for us to experience on the biggest screen possible. However, some of you out there may be wondering, “Who is The Green Knight?”
Before the movie, you can learn about the history ofThe Green Knightthanks to a new mini-oral history narrated by actorRalph Ineson, who you may remember fromThe WitchandGame of Thrones.
Who is The Green Knight?
The Green Knightis based on a 14th century poem calledSir Gawain and The Green Knight. No one knows who truly wrote it, butThe Lord of the RingsauthorJ.R.R. Tolkiendescribed it as “a window of many-colored glass looking back into the middle ages.”
The movie may be calledThe Green Knight, but this is very much a tale about Sir Gawain, who will be played byDev Patel. Though Gawain is one of the Knights at the Roundtable and the nephew of the great King Arthur, he’s still looking for an opportunity to prove himself. Squaring off with the Green Knight could be his chance at earning that honor.
Don’t worry if you want to save the story for the theatrical experience, because the video doesn’t dig into too much detail, and it honestly doesn’t completely explain who the Green Knight is anyway. But the moral is a familiar one from stories of the Middle Ages, where honor is meant to be a guiding light through the darkest of our journeys. Even knowing that, it won’t take away from directorDavid Lowery’s visual feast in recreating this ancient tale.
The Green Knightalso starsAlicia Vikander,Joel Edgerton,Sarita Choudhury,Sean Harris,Kate Dickie,Barry Keoghan, and, of course,Ralph Ineson.
