The Swedish actor stars in ‘The Man from the North’, a legendary Viking story directed by Robert Eggers
Fans of Viking stories get an extra dose with the premiere of ‘The Man from the North’. Signed by the brilliant director Robert Eggers (“The Lighthouse”, “The Witch”), Alexander Skarsgard (Stockholm, 1976) stars in the lead role. The story is based on a medieval Scandinavian legend and begins when the Viking prince Amleth (Skarsgard) witnesses the murder of his father. At that moment, he embarks on a quest for revenge that pushes him to the limit of himself. The star cast also includes Nicole Kidman, Ethan Hawke, Anya Taylor-Joy, Björk, Elliott Rose and Willem Dafoe. Alexander, the eldest of five children of actor Stellan Skarsgard and doctor My Skarsgard, grew up in a working-class neighborhood in Stockholm and dreamed of acting. When he was seven years old, a friend of his father’s, a film director, gave him his first role on the big screen, but it was the series ‘True Blood’ that brought him international fame.
-In this film you are forced to enter a primitive space of man. Is it possible to get a character from these features out of your head?
-The daily filming was a very difficult experience because I felt trapped in the character. Living as a wolf was cathartic, as I was forced to connect with the animal side we carry within us. For any honest Swede, as I consider myself, it’s hard to behave in such a wild way, but it was a great opportunity to bring out those hidden emotions that connect us to nature after all.
-Do you think ‘The Man from the North’ is a true representation of Viking culture?
-There are very representative scenes. I think this movie is Eggers’ vision, and that’s how the audience should understand it. The way this director works allows you to admire the scene in its entirety, because he doesn’t like cutting. Let the camera record from different angles with long shots. Even those violent sequences, which are usually more elaborate, had to be shot that way.
-Without a doubt, the Vikings are very present in Hollywood today. How did this story come about?
-This journey started almost ten years ago, when Robert started writing the script. From the start, his idea was to create an epic adventure about a representative chapter of Scandinavian history. It is not an exact document as it is a story that has been passed down orally for generations. It’s impossible to know to what extent what we’re reporting is real, but there are many aspects of Viking culture that are part of my identity and appear on the screen.
– Do you feel represented by this film?
-Fiction and reality overlap, but we wanted to take the audience back to the Viking Age as much as possible. It is not a modern version of a Viking film. Our goal has always been to do something that felt like the old Icelandic sagas, but in a big way, to entertain the audience. I was born and raised in Sweden, but researching for ‘The Northman’ made me realize how little I knew about the Vikings and the times in which they lived. I was surprised to discover my little knowledge of Norse mythology’s relationship to the spirits that surrounded them. It was fascinating to deepen your understanding of Amleth, to the point where you could understand the world from his perspective. This film has helped me to believe and understand that integral part of my origin.
-They say Rob Eggers is demanding. How was your relationship with him?
-When I met Rob, he had just returned from Iceland from meeting Sjon and Bjork, with whom he wrote the screenplay for the film. I was so surprised by his fascination with Norse mythology that I accepted his offer. After meeting him I decided to see ‘The Witch’ and I found it absolutely breathtaking. Rob is a filmmaker with an eye for detail and that precision we needed to make a historic film. I find his way of working very specific, exhausting and demanding, and I admire him for staying true to himself.
-The band is also full of sex.
-It’s true. The audience has the opportunity to sit down and enjoy because it is a film that shows many aspects of man.
Are you attracted to extreme situations?
-Yes, because, like my character, there is something self-destructive in me. I tend to seek out problems and I shouldn’t get too close to people who, like me, are also self-destructive.
-He started working at a very young age. Have you always wanted to be an actor?
-The doors have always been open for me in Swedish industry and I took advantage of that opportunity. I grew up in Sweden, I was educated there, I am not a Hollywood actor who already wanted to be a star at the age of five. The first film I made came about because the director was a friend of my father’s and he needed a child with my qualities. I didn’t even want to work, but when I made the film, I got excited about acting. I’m glad my father shared his profession with me, otherwise I wouldn’t be an actor today.
-Is it true that you were inspired by a documentary about wolves to create your character?
-I was fascinated by the way wolves behave. I thought it would be interesting to show a werewolf, where its mystery would always be latent.
-It has become an erotic symbol. Do you like the label?
-I see myself as a normal person, I have good and bad days. I think my image has changed a lot since I recorded ‘True Blood’. I just hope the audience enjoys my character in ‘The Man from the North’. I’m not interested in characters that just have to look physical, I’ve always tried to find roles that were real, that had substance. I think it’s artistic suicide to be too vain.
-What do you miss about Stockholm in Los Angeles?
I grew up there, it means a lot to me. My family, my childhood friends and a very different lifestyle are still there. I’m happy in Los Angeles, but Stockholm is great because I don’t need a car to get from one place to another. The lifestyle develops within a community and life is more spontaneous. Here it is like living in a bubble.
Source: La Verdad
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