There’s no question Alexander Skarsgård believes in “The Northman,” the new film in which he plays a Viking out for revenge.
The Swedish actor helped create the concept for the testosterone-fueled ninth century adventure, stretching back to his breakthrough roleas Northman,a Viking vampire preying in the modern era in the HBO series “True Blood” (2008-14). He helped shepherd the concept with visionary director Robert Eggers(“The Witch,”“The Lighthouse”). He was instrumental in hiringNicole Kidman(“one of my favorite actors and one of my favorite humans,” he said of his“Big Little Lies”co-star) in the pivotal role as his twisted mother opposite Ethan Hawke (“Moon Knight”), who plays his father. He also got back in touch with renowned Swedish fitness trainer MagnusLygdbäck, who got him into shape for“The Legend of Tarzan”(2016).
Skarsgård got ripped — then he was ready to rip: The movie was shot — on film —in Northern Ireland and Iceland.
” ‘The Northman’ is a very special project to me, because I’ve been involved since the genesis, the very beginning, and that’s quite unusual as an actor,” Skarsgård said.
It’s been a typically busy time for the prolific Skarsgård. In the past year-plus, he’s starred in the Paramount+ limited series adaptation of Stephen King’s“The Stand,”the blockbuster film“Godzilla vs. Kong”andRebecca Hall‘s Oscar-nominated Netflix film“Passing.”
The 45-year-old son of acclaimed actorStellan Skarsgård(“Dune”)spoke with The Chronicle via video chat from Los Angeles,ahead of the film’s debut on Friday, April 22.
Review: Brutal and bleak, ‘The Northman’ is a nasty visit to a dark time
Q: I readyou recently almost wiped out Sweden’s environmental iconGreta Thunbergwhile on a bicycle. You could have killed her! What happened?
A:Oh my God, the headlines if I had run over Greta Thunberg! Thankfully it was on a bicycle and not an SUV.
I was in Stockholm on my bike. It was just a few weeks ago when we did the Swedish press junket. I was biking to where the press junket was and they had a protest that day with Greta and I got caught up in that and was approaching Greta and other people and I — sorry Greta!
Q: Whew! OK, so how did “The Northman” come about? Did you really come up with the idea? Like is this a prequel to “True Blood”?
A:It’s 100% a prequel to “True Blood.” (laughs) No, not really, but shooting the flashbacks on “True Blood,” to when Eric, my character, was human and a Viking — we did just a few scenes — it started something. We had an absolute blast shooting Viking-age Sweden in Malibu Canyon with a bunch of Swedish actors. It was a really great couple of days and I thought, “Wouldn’t it be great to tell a big, historically accurate Viking story in two hours rather than a two-minute flashback?” So in a way, I have to thank (“True Blood” creator) Alan Ball.
Many years later, I met up with Rob (Eggers), unrelated to a Viking story, and he had just returned from Iceland, so he was fired up and excited about Icelandic culture and Norse mythology. I mentioned that I was trying to develop a Viking movie, and so we hit it off.
Q: Let’s talk about the casting. First off, there’s Anya Taylor-Joy, who was thestar of Eggers’ first film, “The Witch” (2016). This is an intense film; did you talk with her about what Eggers was like as a director?
A:Yeah, because Rob and I knew each other very well by the time we started shooting “The Northman,” but I’d never been on set with with him. Rob has a very unique process with cinematographer Jarin Blaschke in which it is shot on film, which is quite unusual these days, with one camera and no coverage. Almost all the scenes are just one continuous shot. So it was really helpful having Anya and her experience on “The Witch” and talking to her about what it was like to actually work as an actor with Rob.
Q: How did you find him as a director?
A:It’s meticulously planned. Every shot is incredibly detailed and choreographed and you have to — especially for the long, bigger fight scenes, because it gets technically very challenging — do a lot of prep work and rehearse it many, many times and work with the stunt team and the camera department. We shot in some very remote locations, so you just have to come very prepared and know exactly how are you going to move through the village and your relationship to the camera.
Q: You worked with Nicole Kidman on HBO’s“Big Little Lies”as her abusive husband. She credits you forhelping her during those grueling scenes. What makes you comfortable playing uncomfortable scenes with her?
A:“Big Little Lies” was a really intense experience. To go into the depth of that and the darkness of that was physically and emotionally difficult. It created a very unique connection between the two of us. We’re very tight, and when the first draft of “The Northman” came in, it was very obvious that she would be a formidable Queen Gudrún, and everyone agreed.
It was helpful to have that experience on “Big Little Lies” because we hit the ground running on “The Northman.” I was thrilled to jump in and and explore another very deep, dark relationship with her, and having that trust meant a lot to me.
Q: Your scenes together are very intense. Do you feel that you push each other to be better?
A:There’s no one I’d rather go into those dark territories with than Nicole. I feel very safe working with her.
问:你做了如此多的咆哮和猪的咆哮in this movie, as do others in the cast. Did you have a warm glass of salt water on hand to gargle after scenes? It just seemed like you were endangering your vocal cords, especially if you had to do take after take.
A:I 100% did, really! Because after several days, I had no voice at all. They got some great footage somewhere of some of these emotional or intense scenes where I was (switches to a raspy, squealing voice)talking like this!It was not super intimidating (laughs). But it was worth it.
We finished it all a year ago, but I’m still decompressing. It feels, in a way, like the pinnacle of my career. It was such an incredible experience that I’m having a hard time figuring out what to do next — or if I should just call it a day (laughs).
“The Northman”(R) opens in theaters Friday, April 22.