History Renews Vikings for Season 2

Vikingshas been renewed for a second season, History announced Friday.

Vikings, the network's first scripted drama, will begin production on the 10-episode second season this summer, with the series set to return in 2014. The renewal comes just five episodes into Vikings' freshman season. So far, Vikings has been averaging 5 million total viewers and has benefitted from its lead-in The Bible, History's other new hit series that consistently draws in more than 10 million per episode.

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"Vikings is a win win for us," said Dirk Hoogstra, EVP of development and programming for the network, said in a statement. "As our first scripted series, Vikings has paid off in a big way with critical acclaim, strong ratings and a passionate, loyal fan base. It came out of the gate strong and has stayed on top, solidifying History as a major player in the scripted genre, just as we are in reality. We could not be more proud of the entire cast and crew and everyone involved in the making of Vikings."

Vikings airs Sundays at 10/9c. The Season 1 finale will air Sunday, April 28.