The Last Kingdom star doesn't think his character will survive season 5
The treacherous Aethelhelm has made a lot of enemies. **SPOILERS FOR SEASON 4**
Fans of The Last Kingdom were thrilled to hear that Netflix's historical drama will return for season five, but one of the stars isn't convinced he'll make it out of the upcoming episodes alive.
Adrian Schiller joined the show during its third season as influential nobleman Aethelhelm, who has schemed his way into a powerful position among the royalty of Wessex.
During season four, he took on a particularly vicious streak in his bid for power, feeding questionable advice to King Edward as a close adviser, all the while setting a target on the ruler's illegitimate son.
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Things came to a head in the series finale, when Aethelhelm poisoned Lady Aelswith (Eliza Butterworth) and left her just barely clinging onto life in the closing moments.
Many fans are keen to see him punished for his actions and it appears that Schiller himself expects a reckoning when The Last Kingdom returns once again.
"It’s difficult to see how he can survive," he told Winter Is Coming. "When you’ve seen somebody who is basically plotting to screw over the main characters and the characters that you love, the dramatic morality demands that they have a painful demise. I would imagine that he’s probably headed that way."
Schiller went on to discuss a potential end to his character's journey, which includes a hint that Aelswith might just pull through the initial attack made on her life.
He said: "I think what would be interesting would be for him to do quite well for two or three episodes and then have his attempt to kill Aelswith, which either he has at it again or he tries to get to the other kids or something. But anyway, he gets found out."
"I’d like to see him try and get out of it, and maybe get so close to getting out of it, that would be really cool... I think probably what the fans would like to see is him being badly beaten up and left in a cell to rot for a while, and then executed!"
It's hard to argue with that.
The Last Kingdom season five will draw inspiration from books nine and 10 in Bernard Cornwell's The Saxon Stories, which are available on Amazon, continuing Uhtred of Bebbanburg's incredible journey across early England.
It's unclear when the new episodes will actually arrive, given that the show's usual 18-month production cycle could well be extended due to concerns caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Last Kingdom is streaming now on Netflix and Bernard Cornwell's books are available on Amazon. Looking for something else to watch? Check out our guide to the best TV series on Netflix and best movies on Netflix, or visit our TV Guide.
Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
