"Release the kraken!"
America and Japan aren't the only ones that know how to make giant monster/kaiju films.
Norway is stepping into the ring with its own take on a classic creature, one that draws directly from the nation’s deep well of maritime myth
Norwegian filmmaker Pål Øie directs the monster pic, which features a cast that includes Sara Khorami, Mikkel Bratt Silset, Ingvild Holthe Bygdnes, Jenny Evensen, and Steinar Klouman Hallert.
At the center of the story is Johanne, a dedicated marine biologist who travels to the remote community of Vangsnes to study the area’s fish farming operations.
What begins as a routine scientific assignment quickly spirals into something far more disturbing.
Unexplainable events, eerie sightings near the water, and a string of violent deaths all seem to circle back to the fjord’s shadowy depths, where locals whisper that an ancient, mountain-sized creature has slumbered for centuries.
Although many modern audiences associate the kraken with Greek lore, that connection is actually a relatively recent misunderstanding.
In reality, the monster’s origins trace back to Norwegian and Greenlandic seafaring legends from as early as the 12th and 13th centuries.
Sailors described a colossal being known as the Hafgufa (“sea mist”), a creature so enormous it could be mistaken for an island.
Scholars widely believe these early accounts inspired what we now call the kraken.
The misconception linking it to Greek myths can be credited mostly to pop culture, especially the 1981 Clash of the Titans and its 2010 remake, both of which reimagined the beast for a Mediterranean setting.
The erroneous association of the kraken with Greek myths is largely owed to the 1981 film Clash of the Titans and its more recent, 2010 remake.
Øie’s film is currently slated to hit theaters in Norway on February 6, 2026.
As of now, a North American release date, or even confirmation of a streaming distributor, hasn’t been announced, but given the global appetite for myth-driven monster tales, it seems likely that international audiences won’t be left waiting forever.
"When a village in the Sognefjord is struck by mysterious events, marine biologist Johanne Berge is reluctantly sent to investigate. Strange natural phenomena, strange sounds from the depths, and a tragic accident raise suspicions that something dangerous is threatening the fjord. As Johanne fights both environmental destruction and her own past, she must uncover the truth before the horrors of the deep take over."