# Occupied (2015)

> A near-future Norway wakes under Russian occupation after its new government halts North Sea oil production, and its people and officials must navigate collaboration and resistance.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/56624

## Facts

- Seasons: 3
- Episodes: 24
- Episode runtime: 45 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama, thriller, science fiction
- Created by: Erik Skjoldbjærg, Karianne Lund, Jo Nesbø
- Network: TV 2 Direkte
- Cast: Henrik Mestad, Ane Dahl Torp, Eldar Skar, Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė, Vegar Hoel, Ragnhild Gudbrandsen, Thea Green Lundberg, Janne Heltberg
- TMDB rating: 7.6/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4192998/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: dense
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: tense, sober, politically charged, quietly dread-filled

## What critics say

Audiences broadly praise the first two seasons for their even-handed portrayal of a complicated occupation, with the third season seen as a weaker transitional outing.

## Synopsis

Occupied (2015-2019) is a Norwegian national-television political thriller series created by Erik Skjoldbjærg, Karianne Lund and Jo Nesbø for TV 2 Direkte. Set in a near-future Norway, the story begins when the newly elected environmentally minded government halts the country's all-important North Sea oil and gas production, and Russia moves in to occupy the nation on behalf of the European Union. Henrik Mestad plays Jesper Berg, a figure caught in the shifting loyalties of the occupation, while Ane Dahl Torp plays Bente Norum and Eldar Skar plays Hans Martin Djupvik, with Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė as Irina Sidorva representing the occupying power. The engine of the show is the tangle of motives around power, money and survival, as officials, soldiers, activists and ordinary families weigh collaboration against resistance. Across three seasons and twenty-four episodes, each hour threads together several perspectives, letting every party appear as human, with its own reasons and compromises. The tone is tense, sober and politically charged, with a quiet dread running under procedural negotiations and covert maneuvering. Its alternate history grounding gives it a plausible, grounded texture. Fans of The Man in the High Castle, Borgen and Homeland will find resonance in its blend of occupation drama and political intrigue.

## Shows like Occupied

- [Nobel (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/59650)
- [Furia (2021)](https://ember.film/tv/107730)
- [Survivors (2021)](https://ember.film/tv/110482)
- [Borderliner (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/63807)
- [Blue Eyes (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/56575)
- [Days of Honor (2008)](https://ember.film/tv/38738)
- [War Sailor (2023)](https://ember.film/tv/140090)
- [The Saboteurs (2015)](https://ember.film/tv/55079)
- [State of Happiness (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/71493)
- [Rød snø (1985)](https://ember.film/tv/19074)

---

Site overview: https://ember.film/llms.txt