The Battle of Hastings is getting the prestige TV treatment — and from the first trailer for King & Conqueror, it looks like a war worth watching. BBC and CBS Studios have dropped the debut footage for the upcoming 8-part series, King & Conqueror, which dramatizes the seismic clash between Harold Godwinson and William of Normandy — two former allies who would ultimately face off in 1066 for control of the English crown. Starring James Norton as Harold, Earl of Wessex, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as William, Duke of Normandy, the series brings to life the brutal power struggles that shaped a millennium of European history.

Created and written by Michael Robert Johnson (Sherlock Holmes), the series is produced by The Development Partnership, Rabbit Track Pictures, Shepherd Content, RVK Studios, and CBS Studios, in association with the BBC. Icelandic filmmaker Baltasar Kormákur (Everest, Trapped) directs the premiere and will oversee the creative arc of the series as executive producer.

The supporting cast is equally stacked, featuring Emily Beecham as Edith Swan-neck and Clémence Poésy as Matilda of Flanders, with Eddie Marsan as King Edward the Confessor, Juliet Stevenson as Lady Emma, Jean-Marc Barr as King Henry of France, Luther Ford as Tostig, Geoff Bell as Godwin, and Oliver Masucci as Baldwin, among many others.

James Norton Has Developed King & Conqueror for 5 Years

Speaking with Collider‘s Maggie Lovitt, Norton — who also produces the series through his company Rabbit Track Pictures — shared his passion for the project:

“I’ve been developing it for about five years. My business partner, Kitty Kaletsky, and I have been deep into it. We’ve got this massive studio build, and some days we look around and say, ‘How the fuck did we end up here?’ It’s been a ride — a lot of spinning plates, but it’s going well.”

Filming has taken the cast to locations across Iceland, and Norton says the production is committed to authenticity:

“An incredible amount of it is true, so we haven’t had to veer far from the actual history. The drama and the sort of soap opera aspect of it — it’s just incredible.”

Norton also spoke about his personal connection to the subject:

“In England, it’s the first date we learn — 1066, Battle of Hastings. But most people don’t know much beyond that. What’s continued to propel us forward is the characters. It’s this incredible gallery of real historical figures.”

Stay tuned for more updates on King & Conqueror, which is set to air on the BBC and Paramount+ in select markets.