Stellan Skarsgård
 |
Stellan Skarsgård | |
|---|---|
 Stellan Skarsgård, January 2004 | |
| Awards | Silver Bear for Best Actor 1982 Den Enfaldige mördaren |
ⓘ (IPA: [ˈstɛlːan ˈskɒːʂgɔ:ɖ] in Swedish), or "Skashgord"; born 13 June 1951) is a Swedish film actor, known for his roles in Breaking the Waves, The Hunt for Red October, Ronin, Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean and Mamma Mia!
Personal life
Skarsgård was born in Gothenburg, Sweden, the son of Gudrun and J. Skarsgård.[1] He moved often in his childhood and he lived, amongst other places, in Totebo, Kalmar, Marielund and Uppsala.[2]
He is the father of Alexander Skarsgård and Gustaf Skarsgård, also actors. Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly named their son Stellan (born 5 August 2003) after him.[citation needed]
Acting career
Skarsgård started his acting career early, at age of 10 he already had a great experience in film, TV, and stage.[3] Most of his early roles were in Swedish TV and movies.
Skarsgård is particularly associated with director Lars von Trier, having starred in three of the Danish auteur's features, including The Kingdom, Breaking the Waves, and Dogville. Aside from these, his best-known Scandinavian work is probably his leading role as the guilt-ridden policeman Jonas Engström in the original Insomnia.
Among his English-language film roles are:
- King Theseus who abducted Helen in Helen of Troy
- A scientist testing a cure for Alzheimer's Disease on sharks in Deep Blue Sea
- Abolitionist Lewis Tappan in Amistad
- Russian submarine captain Tupolov in The Hunt for Red October
- an engineer in The Unbearable Lightness of Being
- an MIT professor of mathematics in Good Will Hunting
- a young Lankester Merrin in Exorcist: The Beginning (and in Paul Schrader's version, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist)
- Gregor in Ronin
- the Saxon warlord Cerdic in King Arthur,
- William "Bootstrap Bill" Turner in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
- Joe Heiser in Wind
- Swedish writer Bill Anderson in the film version of Mamma Mia!
He was considered for the role of Oskar Schindler in Schindler's List. Interestingly, Skarsgård reports that people often mistake him for Liam Neeson, who portrayed Schindler in the film. Skarsgård would in fact replace Neeson in Exorcist: The Beginning (2004). He also had a guest stint on the HBO TV Series "Entourage" as Verner Vollstedt, the German director of the fictional film Smokejumpers who has a bias against the main character Vincent Chase, one of the stars of the film.
Filmography
This filmography is not full but rather a representative one.
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Bombi Bitt och jag a.k.a. Bombi Bitt and Me, mini TV series | Bombi Bitt |
| 1972 | Firmafesten a.k.a. The Office Party | Peter |
| 1972 | Strandhugg i somras a.k.a. Raid in the Summer | Erik |
| 1972 | Magnetisören, TV | Soldier |
| 1973 | Fem døgn i August a.k.a. Five days in August | Christer |
| 1973 | Bröllopet a.k.a. The Wedding | Roffe Eriksson |
| 1974 | Anita - ur en tonårsflickas dagbok a.k.a. Anita: Swedish Nymphet | Erik |
| 1974 | The Intruders a.k.a. Inkräktarna/Let Us Play Sex/Swedish Sex Games/Fait acompli | Peter Delaney, their son |
| 1977 | Tabu a.k.a. Taboo | Jan-Erik |
| 1977 | Hemåt i natten a.k.a. Homeward in the Night | Kurt Sjöberg |
| 1982 | Den enfaldige mördaren a.k.a. The Simple-Minded Murder | Sven |
| 1983 | P & B | Karl-Johan 'Charlie' Pettersson |
| 1984 | Åke och hans värld a.k.a. Åke and His World | Ebenholtz |
| 1985 | Falsk som vatten a.k.a. False as Water | Stig |
| 1985 | Noon Wine | Olaf Helton |
| 1985 | Pelle Svanslös i Amerikatt a.k.a. Peter-No-Tail in Americat | Pelle Swanson, voice |
| 1986 | Ormens väg på hälleberget a.k.a. The Serpent's Way | Karl Orsa Markström |
| 1987 | Jim & piraterna Blom a.k.a. Jim and the Pirates | Gustav, Jim's Father |
| 1987 | Hip hip hurra! a.k.a. Hip Hip Hurrah! | Sören Kröyer |
| 1988 | The Unbearable Lightness of Being | The Engineer |
| 1988 | Vargens tid a.k.a. Arilds tid/Time of the Wolf | Peder Ulfstand |
| 1988 | Friends | Matt |
| 1988 | The Perfect Murder | Axel Svensson |
| 1989 | S/Y Glädjen a.k.a. S/Y Joy | Klas Larsson |
| 1989 | Täcknamn Coq Rouge a.k.a. Code Name Coq Rouge | Carl Hamilton |
| 1989 | Vildanden a.k.a. The Wild Duck | Gregers Werle |
| 1989 | Kvinnorna på taket a.k.a. The Women on the Roof | Willy |
| 1989 | Förhöret a.k.a. The interrogation | Carl Hamilton |
| 1990 | The Hunt for Red October a.k.a. | Capt. Tupolev |
| 1990 | God afton, Herr Wallenberg a.k.a. Good Evening | Raoul Wallenberg |
| 1991 | Oxen a.k.a. The Ox | Helge Roos |
| 1992 | Den demokratiske terroristen a.k.a. The Democratic Terrorist | Carl Hamilton |
| 1992 | Wind | Joe Heiser |
| 1993 | Kådisbellan a.k.a. Innocent Life | Fritiof Schütt |
| 1993 | Sista dansen a.k.a. The Last Dance | Host in Norrköping |
| 1995 | Jönssonligans största kupp a.k.a. The Jönsson Gang's Greatest Robbery | Herman Melvin |
- Kjærlighetens kjøtere (released as Zero Kelvin in the UK and USA) (1995)
- Hundarna i Riga (The Hound of Riga, 1995)
- Harry och Sonja (1996) ("Harry and Sonja")
- Breaking the Waves (1996)
- Insomnia (1997)
- My Son the Fanatic (1997)
- Amistad (1997)
- Good Will Hunting (1997)
- Riket II (1997)
- Glasblåsarns barn (The Glass-blower's Children, 1997)
- Savior (1998)
- Ronin (1998)
- Deep Blue Sea (1999)
- Harlan County War (2000)
- Passion of Mind (2000)
- Signs & Wonders (2000)
- Timecode (2000)
- Dancer in the Dark (2000)
- Aberdeen (2000)
- The Hire: Powder Keg (2000)
- Kiss Kiss (Bang Bang) (2000)
- Taking Sides (2001)
- The Glass House (2001)
- City of Ghosts (2002)
- No Good Deed, (2003)
- Att döda ett barn (To Kill a Child, 2003, voice)
- Helen of Troy, (2003)
- Dogville (2003)
- King Arthur (2004)
- Exorcist: The Beginning (2004)
- Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005)
- Beowulf & Grendel (2005)
- 3 & 3 (2005)
- Kill Your Darlings (2006)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
- Goya's Ghosts (2006)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
- Arn – The Knight Templar (2007)
- Mamma Mia! (2008)
- WΔZ (2008)
- Entourage (TV Series) (2008) 3 episodes
- God on Trial (2008)
- Boogie Woogie (2008)
- Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End (2008)
- Angels & Demons (2009)
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award or nomination | Category | For a Role in Movie | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Nominated | Berlin International Film Festival | Best Actor | |
| 1982 | Won | Berlin International Film Festival | Silver Bear for Best Actor | Sven in Den Enfaldige Mördaren |
| 2001 | Nominated | European Film Academy | Best Actor | Wilhelm Furtwängler in Taking Sides |
| 2001 | Nominated | European Film Academy | Best European Actor | Wilhelm Furtwängler in Taking Sides |
References
External links
