# Rykter

Rykter (English: Rumours) is a Norwegian teen drama television series about the life of Erik Nielsen, who had to move to the fictional island Vesterøy. It was produced by NRK3, which is part of the Norwegian public broadcaster NRK.

## Premise

Rykter revolves around Erik Nielsen who needed to leave Bergen because he beat up one of his football teammates and was caught by the police. He moves to the fictional island Vesterøy to live with his mother where he tries to hide the reason why he had to move before his new friends.
The first season covers the problems Erik faces with integrating into the small community as well as the relationship between Mathias and Sara. Problems arise when Mathias plan for his future doesn't align anymore with the plan of Sara, which leads to Mathias and Sara growing apart while Sara and Erik grow closer together. This leads to multiple problems including Sara's relationship with Thea, her best friend, who tries to take revenge on Erik with Mathias together.
The second season continues seamlessly with the story line. Mathias now tries to befriend Erik and tries to integrate him into his friend group but faces backlash from Felix his best friend. Felix attempts to force Mathias to choose between Erik and him.
The second season hints at Mathias' growing attraction to Erik, and at the end of the season, Mathias bestows a very long kiss on Erik; Erik does not actively respond, but does not pull away either.
At the beginning of Season 3, Mathias has an erotic dream concerning Erik, and Erik remarks that he enjoyed the kiss. However, their relationship remains unexplored for the rest of the season. Although it's clear that Mathias is fully aware of his same-sex feelings toward Erik, it's unclear what Erik is thinking or feeling.
The series deals with the influence of rumours (Norwegian: Rykter) on mental health and social standing. The impact of the beforementioned social standing is also addressed. Alcohol and drug consumption as well as sexual harassment are also addressed throughout the series.

## Characters
### Main

* Benjamin Ebbesen as John Erik Nielsen: a new student in Vesterøy who is struggling to adapt to his new life and making new friends, after having to leave Bergen because he beat someone up.
* Teo Tomczuk as Mathias: a student and lifelong resident of Vesterøy who has struggles in his relationship with Sara as well as with his parents because he wants to pursue his dream not follow the plan of his parents and Sara, where he would take over Vesterøy Seafood. His growing attraction to Erik results in a very passionate kiss with Erik at the end of season 2.
* Alisa Sussmann as Sara: a student and lifelong resident of Vesterøy who wants to study in Bergen to become a doctor but struggles with finding her real dream in life
* Sissilja Garen as Thea: a student who manages the Snapchat Channel Vesterøy Exposed and is very keen on keeping her social status as a rich child of a lawyer in London but faces difficulties when reality catches up
* Martin Storebø Koh as Felix: a student and Mathias' best friend who has problems with Mathias and Erik growing closer together and struggles with adapting to the new life situation since Erik moved to Verstrøy

### Recurring

* Tobias Vassnes as Elias
* Jon Kennedy Dushime Niyokindi as Nathaniel
* Negusse Behre as Moses
* Ole Jakob Sunde as Anders
* Martin Bøstrand as Alexander
* Mathea Onarheim Grønnevik as Synnøve
* Simran Skulberg de Souza as Maira
* Dorthe Bakken as Katrine-Marie
* Helene Iversen as Louise
* Emil Jonasdal Johannessen as Adrian
* Aymen Said as Mohammed
* Jessica Johnsen as Ragnhild
* Juliana Fagertveit Haukedal as Yara
* Siv Torin Knudsen Petersen as Sigrid
* Heine Totland as Olav
* Sigmund Hovind as Christoffer
* Astrid Bergtun Elnes as Elisabeth
* Amy Black Ndiaye as Sandra
* Dominika Natalia Minkacz Sira as Jolanta

### Guest

* Leo Ajkic as the boxing trainer of Sara
* Kjell Arne Kjærgård as Onkel Eldar
* Svein Harry Hauge as Jarle Svensson
* Desta Marie Beeder as Marie
* Jonas Veland as Andy
* Marcus Kabelo Møll Mosele as Footballtrainer
* Andreas Søfteland Milde as wheelchair user
* Jone Holmelid as Sondre
* Jessica Johnsen as Ragnhild
* Krister Wiberg as garbage picker
* Erna Solberg

### Double

* Henrik Åsheim as Mathias in Season 1 Episode 12
* Henrik Kalgraff as Mathias in Season 1 Episode 13

## Episodes
### Series overview

| Season | Episodes | Episodes | Originally released | Originally released | Network |
| 1 | 15 | 15 | September 22, 2022 (2022-09-22) | September 22, 2022 (2022-09-22) | NRK TV |
| 2 | 15 | 15 | February 24, 2023 (2023-02-24) | February 24, 2023 (2023-02-24) | | NRK TV |
| 3 | 15 | 15 | August 19, 2024 (2024-08-19) | August 19, 2024 (2024-08-19) | | NRK TV |

### Season 1 (2022)

| No. overall | No. in season | Original Title | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Runtime |
| 01 | 01 | "Snitches gir vi stitches" | Snitches we give stiches | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | September 22, 2022 (2022-09-22) | 9min |
| 02 | 02 | "Vært med i noe?" | Participated in something? | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | September 22, 2022 (2022-09-22) | 11min |
| 03 | 03 | "Skal vi slå opp?" | Should we break up? | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | September 22, 2022 (2022-09-22) | 8min |
| 04 | 04 | "Du skal kysse meg" | You are going to kiss me | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | September 22, 2022 (2022-09-22) | 9min |
| 05 | 05 | "Han tenner på katter!" | He is turned on by cats! | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | September 26, 2022 (2022-09-26) | 9min |
| 06 | 06 | "Du kveler meg" | You suffocate me | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | September 26, 2022 (2022-09-26) | 9min |
| 07 | 07 | "Kongen er singel igjen" | The king is single again | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | September 29, 2022 (2022-09-29) | 8min |
| 08 | 08 | "Skal jeg redde deg?" | Shall I save you? | Andreas Søfteland Milde | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 3, 2022 (2022-10-03) | 10min |
| 09 | 09 | "Hun har vært utro" | She has been unfaithful | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 3, 2022 (2022-10-03) | 10min |
| 10 | 10 | "Falske jævla hore!" | Fake fucking whore! | Andreas Søfteland Milde | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 10, 2022 (2022-10-10) | 10min |
| 11 | 11 | "Vi er IKKE sammen" | We are NOT together | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 13, 2022 (2022-10-13) | 10min |
| 12 | 12 | "Har jeg bare noia?" | Am I just having fun? | Andreas Søfteland Milde | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 17, 2022 (2022-10-17) | 8min |
| 13 | 13 | "Ikke lyv til meg!" | Don't lie to me! | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 20, 2022 (2022-10-20) | 8min |
| 14 | 14 | "Du kan ikke komme!" | You cannot come | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 24, 2022 (2022-10-24) | 8min |
| 15 | 15 | "La oss ta psykoen!" | Let's take the psycho! | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | October 27, 2022 (2022-10-27) | 9min |

### Season 2 (2023)

| No. overall | No. in season | Original Title | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Runtime |
| 16 | 01 | "Du må stoppe dem!" | You must stop them! | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | February 24, 2023 (2023-02-24) | 8min |
| 17 | 02 | "Ingenting skjedde" | Nothing happened | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | February 27, 2023 (2023-02-27) | 8min |
| 18 | 03 | "Det er oss eller han" | It's us or him | Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | Tron-Petter Aunaas Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 3, 2023 (2023-03-03) | 9min |
| 19 | 04 | "Ikke uten deg, kompis" | Not without you, buddy | Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | Tron-Petter Aunaas Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 6, 2023 (2023-03-06) | 10min |
| 20 | 05 | "Er det deg?" | Is that you? | Andreas Søfteland Milde | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 10, 2023 (2023-03-10) | 10min |
| 21 | 06 | "Gidder ikke noe kødd" | Doesn't give a damn | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 13, 2023 (2023-03-13) | 10min |
| 22 | 07 | "Hun lyver om alt!" | She lies about everything! | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 17, 2023 (2023-03-17) | 9min |
| 23 | 08 | "Nå vet du det" | Now you know | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 20, 2023 (2023-03-20) | 10min |
| 24 | 09 | "Føkk deg, Felix!" | Fuck you, Felix! | Nina Knag | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 24, 2023 (2023-03-24) | 10min |
| 25 | 10 | "Alle venter på deg" | Everyone is waiting for you | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 27, 2023 (2023-03-27) | 11min |
| 26 | 11 | "Hvor kan hun være?" | Where can she be? | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | March 31, 2023 (2023-03-31) | 11min |
| 27 | 12 | "Alle er fake!" | Everyone is fake | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | April 10, 2023 (2023-04-10) | 9min |
| 28 | 13 | "Kan jeg få deg?" | Can I have you? | Nina Knag | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | April 14, 2023 (2023-04-14) | 9min |
| 29 | 14 | "Vi er ferdige!" | We're done! | Nina Knag | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | April 17, 2023 (2023-04-17) | 10min |
| 30 | 15 | "Alt eller ingenting" | All or nothing | Kjersti Steinsbø | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | April 21, 2023 (2023-04-21) | 12min |

### Season 3 (2024)

| No. overall | No. in season | Original Title | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Runtime |
| 31 | 01 | "Gutta venter" | The boys are waiting | Andreas Søfteland Milde | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | August 19, 2024 (2024-08-19) | 9min |
| 32 | 02 | "Ingen bakker en homse!" | No one backs a gay | Andreas Søfteland Milde | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | August 19, 2024 (2024-08-19) | 10min |
| 33 | 03 | "Hei nye nabo!" | Hello new neighbor! | Andreas Søfteland Milde | Christoffer V. Ebbesen Sigrid Clementine Kolbjørnsen | August 23, 2024 (2024-08-23) | 11min |
| 34 | 04 | "Like fake som før" | Just as fake as before | Unknown | | August 26, 2024 (2024-08-26) | 9min |
| 35 | 05 | "Kan du stikke?" | Can you leave? | Unknown | | August 30, 2024 (2024-08-30) | 9min |
| 36 | 06 | "Gidder ikke noe piss" | Doesn't give a damn | Unknown | | September 2, 2024 (2024-09-02) | 10min |
| 37 | 07 | "Hvorfor i helvete spør du?" | Why the hell you ask? | Unknown | | September 6, 2024 (2024-09-06) | 10min |
| 38 | 08 | "Ett elendig ligg" | A miserable lie | Unknown | | September 9, 2024 (2024-09-09) | 9min |
| 39 | 09 | "Ikke din hore!" | Not your whore! | Unknown | | September 13, 2024 (2024-09-13) | 10min |
| 40 | 10 | "Dra til helvete, Olivia" | Go to hell, Olivia! | Unknown | | September 16, 2024 (2024-09-16) | 10min |
| 41 | 11 | "Du hadde en jævla jobb" | You had one fucking job | Unknown | | September 20, 2024 (2024-09-20) | 10min |
| 42 | 12 | "Skulle vi ligge?" | Should we lie? | Unknown | | September 23, 2024 (2024-09-23) | 10min |
| 43 | 13 | "Oslohoren har klamma!" | The Oslo whore has a klamma. | Unknown | | September 27, 2024 (2024-09-27) | 9min |
| 44 | 14 | "Hva sa du nå?" | What did you say now? | Unknown | | September 30, 2024 (2024-09-30) | 10min |
| 45 | 15 | "Nå står vi sammen!" | Now we stand together! | Unknown | | October 4, 2024 (2024-10-04) | 10min |

## Production

Rykter is produced by the Norwegian public broadcaster NRK3 in cooperation with Mothership Entertainment AS. After the first seasons success the German public broadcaster NDR joined as co-producer with the goal to distribute the show internationally. The show has been granted a subsidy of 2,750,000 NOK from the Nordisk Film & TV Fond and has a total budget of 18,061,936 NOK.

### Location

The series takes place on a fictional island named Vesterøy. The show was filmed in the sea gap in Øygarden in Western Norway west of Bergen, where some scenes were also shot.

## Release

The series premiered on September 22, 2022, on NRK TV, the streaming service of NRK, as well as on NRK Super in live television. After the success of the first season the second season premiered on the 24th of February 2023 again on NRK TV and NRK Super. It was premiered in Italian on RaiPlay on July 14, 2023.

## Reception
### Norway

The main audience for Rykter is Norway, where it landed a success. After the release of the first season it achieved high viewership ratings on NRK which lead to the production of a third season. It was well received in Norway and gained some reputation.

### International

The series has received international attention even though it is specifically targeted at a Norwegian audience. This has led to its distribution on RaiPlay, the Streaming service of the Italian public broadcaster RAI. It is the first Norwegian program to achieve the top spot ranking on RaiPlay for multiple weeks.