At a glance
- From: Norway
- Years: 2015 to 2019, three seasons
- Format: 24 episodes of around 45 minutes
- Language: Norwegian, Russian, English and French, with subtitles
- For fans of: Borgen, The Bridge, Homeland
In the first episode, a masked commando kidnaps the Norwegian prime minister. The reason is a political decision: his government has stopped oil and gas production, to move to green energy. Russia then occupies the country, with the quiet agreement of the European Union, to restart the production of oil and gas. The Norwegians must decide how far to resist.
Occupied (Okkupert) began as an idea by the crime writer Jo Nesbø. He developed it with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg, and it was shown by the Norwegian channel TV 2 in October 2015. At the time, with a budget of 90 million Norwegian kroner, it was the most expensive Norwegian series ever made.
The characters are what make it work. Jesper Berg (Henrik Mestad) is a prime minister who believed in green energy and now has to deal with the consequences. Hans Martin Djupvik (Eldar Skar) is his bodyguard, a member of the Norwegian Police Security Service. Irina Sidorova (Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė) is the Russian ambassador to Norway. Bente Norum (Ane Dahl Torp) owns a restaurant, and shows how an occupation enters ordinary life.
Critics compared the story to the Russian annexation of Crimea. The Russian ambassador to Norway even said that the series tried to scare Norwegians with a threat from the east that did not exist. It asks a simple question: what do you do when a small country depends on a big neighbour?
It is not light entertainment, and ARTE warns that some scenes may upset young or sensitive viewers. But the idea is strong, and the Daily Telegraph praised its innovation and its tense plotting.
If you like this, try these from Europe
- Borgen 🇩🇰: a Danish drama about the first woman prime minister of Denmark. Less danger, but the same close look at power. The first three seasons were shown by DR from 2010 to 2013.
- Babylon Berlin 🇩🇪: a police thriller set in Berlin at the end of the Weimar Republic, when democracy is falling apart. Free on the ARD Mediathek, the service of the German public broadcasters.
Where to find it in Europe
- On ARTE: season 1 (10 episodes) and season 3 (6 episodes) are free on arte.tv from 14 August 2026 until 31 July 2027, in France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania and Spain. We did not find season 2 on ARTE.
- In the Nordic countries: it is on Viaplay in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland.
- On DVD: the series is on DVD in Germany and in France.
- On subscription services: in France on TF1+, and in Spain and the United Kingdom on Prime Video (check which seasons your country has).
- In other countries: check your public broadcaster. The series was sold to many European countries.
The European context
Occupied is a Norwegian series, but its story is European from the first minute: it is about energy, about the European Union and about the border with Russia. Norway is not a member of the EU, so the series also looks at the EU from the outside, as a partner that can become a problem.
Watch the trailer: https://youtu.be/16FAPzgcwSY
Also on Choosing Europe
- Series: The Man Who Played with Fire 🇸🇪: another series from northern Europe about politics, this one a real investigation into the assassination of Olof Palme.
- Series: Die Kaiserin (The Empress) 🇩🇪: another European series that tells the story of a famous historical figure.
