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TV SERIES · 2012– · NORWAY

Lilyhammer

23 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026

23 Interesting Facts About Lilyhammer

Interesting Facts (18)

  1. #001

    Lilyhammer is the first Netflix original TV series.

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  2. #002

    James Gandolfini and Edie Falco were set to make a cameo appearance as their The Sopranos (1999) characters in the second season's final episode, in which Frank Tagliano (Steven Van Zandt) was to run into them at a random cabin. Van Zandt was in talks with director David Chase to direct the scene, but the plans ended with Gandolfini's sudden death in 2013.

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  3. #003

    Angelina 'The Ex' Tagliano was played by Maureen Van Zandt, who has been married to Steven Van Zandt (Frank/Johnny) since 1982. Maureen Van Zandt also played Steven Van Zandt's on-screen wife in the popular series The Sopranos (1999).

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  4. #004

    The first season premiered on 25 January 2012 on Norway's NRK1 with a record audience of 998,000 viewers, one fifth of Norway's population.

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  5. #005

    In the final episode, Loose Ends (2014), Bruce Springsteen appears alongside Steven Van Zandt as Giuseppe 'Joey the Undertaker' Tagliano. The episode takes its name from Bruce Springsteen's song of the same name. The two play together in the E Street Band.

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  6. #006

    On 22 July 2015, writer, director and star Steven Van Zandt announced on Twitter that the series had been cancelled, and Netflix confirmed the following day that it had been cancelled. NRK, which owns the rights, remained optimistic that a deal could be made with another company for a fourth season.

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  7. #007

    It briefly reunites The Sopranos (1999) cast members Steven Van Zandt and Tony Sirico in two episodes.

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  8. #008

    Production of the second season was postponed because of Steven Van Zandt's schedule with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's Wrecking Ball Tour. So that filming could continue, guitarist Tom Morello replaced Van Zandt for the Australian leg of the tour.

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  9. #009

    The second season was filmed in both Norway and New York City during the first four months of 2013.

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  10. #010

    Season 3 was filmed in Lillehammer, Lofoten and Oslo in Norway, in New York City and in Rio de Janeiro.

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  11. #011

    Steven Van Zandt's character Frank Tagliano parallels his character Silvio Dante in The Sopranos (1999). They were meant to be different, but most traits are the same between the two.

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  12. #012

    In the first episode of season 2, a man is shown asking for help on the day Johnny's (Steven Van Zandt) children are baptized. It closely resembles a man asking Don Corleone for help on his daughter's wedding day.

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  13. #013

    It is the first Norwegian Netflix Original TV series.

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  14. #014

    The painting behind the desk in Frankie's (Steven Van Zandt) office at the Flamingo is Caravaggio's "Judith Beheading Holofernes".

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  15. #015

    Another scene from The Godfather is recreated when Dag takes Jan out on the lake by boat. Jan shoots him while he is saying the Hail Mary, just as Fredo is shot in The Godfather. Fredo also mentioned saying Hail Marys while fishing.

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  16. #016

    Filming on the third season began in January 2014, and Netflix remained the exclusive US broadcaster.

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  17. #017

    Marian Saastad Ottesen (Sigrid Haugli), Trond Fausa (Torgeir Lien), Nils Jørgen Kaalstad (Dag Solstad), Richard Skog (Oddjob), Finn Schau (Arve Østli), Silje Torp (Mette Hansen), Jon Øigarden (Bjørn Hansen), Mikkel Bratt Silset (Roger), Erik Aleksander Schjerven (Petter Krohg) and Ingar Helge Gimle (Appelsinen) all worked on Vikingane (2016), as Hildur, Rufus, Arvid, Sturla Beinknuser, Lovgiveren, Frøya, Jarl Varg, Ragnar, Magnus and Nomadehøvding respectively.

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  18. #018

    Frank's (Stevie Van Zandt) healthy hair is actually a hairpiece. The actor was left partly bald in his mid-twenties after a serious car accident that left scars on his scalp where hair could no longer grow. The accident, in which he broke his head through the windshield, made covering his head a practical necessity, which later became a well-known part of his professional image as an award-winning musician.

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Production Story (2)

  1. #019

    The series was cancelled after its third season due to a dispute between NRK (the Norwegian TV channel that broadcast the series in Norway) and Netflix, after NRK published the third season on its website before Netflix. This caused some controversy, as viewers were able to watch the entire third season for free on NRK's website before Netflix uploaded the season.

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  2. #020

    The first season was shot in 2011, its post-production was completed in November, and it was initially scheduled to air on NRK1 on 1 January 2012. However, the Norwegian broadcast was suspended because of a dispute between NRK1 and the producers over product placement, which was illegal under Norwegian law at the time. The series premiered in Norway on 25 January 2012. It was commissioned by NRK1 from Norway's Rubicon TV AS, together with Netflix and German distributor Red Arrow International.

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Characters & Cast (1)

  1. #021

    The references recall The Sopranos (1999), early in the third season, when Frank (Steven Van Zandt) is shot and moved into a hospital room with a crazy old man. Frank hopes all of this is a dream, and the old man responds that it is a dream, calling him Silvio, the name of the character Steve played in The Sopranos.

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Easter Eggs & References (1)

  1. #022

    When Franky (Steven Van Zandt) lies to Torgeir (Trond Fausa) about his past, the letters BS can be seen on the license plate.

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Deeper Meaning (1)

  1. #023

    The spelling of the series title alludes to Lily, the dog of Tagliano (Steven Van Zandt) that is killed during an attempt on Tagliano's life in the first episode, Reality Check (2012), and to the way Frank and some other English speakers pronounce the town's name.

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Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

  • IMDb IMDb title page (trivia)

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