Spotlight on: Gustaf Skarsgård

Lights off, spotlight on! Time to see in which series this actor portrayed a character. Towards the end of 1980, Gustaf Skarsgård is born in Stockholm, Sweden. He is the son of Stellan Skarsgård, who we know from series such as Chernobyl and movies such as Good Will Hunting. At a young age, Gustaf has various roles in several Swedish productions. At the age of nine, he has his official acting debut with small roles in Täckmann Cog Rouge and Prima Ballerina.

At the age of fourteen, Skarsgård has his first recurring role. In the Swedish four-part miniseries Min vän Percys magiska gymnastikskor (The magical shoes of my friend Percy) as the young Jan. Later, he has more roles in other Swedish productions. Skarsgård could be seen in Skuggonars Hus (Shadow house) and Cleo.

With each passing role, Skarsgård becomes more famous in Sweden. At the age of 30, he portrayed Knut Eriksson in the television series Arn - Tempelridderen. Arn is set in a medieval setting, and also features Gustaf's brothers Bill and Walter. His father, Stellan, is also part of this series.

Not much later - by now we've reached 2013 - Gustaf decides to go international. He is cast as Floki Vilgerðarson in Vikings. A role that suits him quite well. Skarsgård manages to portray Floki as an eccentric but intelligent man. Someone who is more of a thinker than a fighter. Someone with a healthy dose of scepticism and someone who is highly loyal. It is not without reason that Floki becomes one of the most loyal followers of Ragnar Lothbrok (Travis Fimmel). In particular the many small gestures - which shows the nervous nature of Floki - and his devotion to the Viking gods and Ragnar ensure that he is a highly interesting character. Skarsgård shows his acting skills and he becomes an increasingly more important character in the series because of it.

The fact that he manages to perform quite well in a bigger series hasn't gone unnoticed. Skarsgård ends up in a recurring role in the second season of Westworld. He portrays Karl Strand, Head of Operations of Delos Incorporated. Here, we see an entirely different side of the actor, which requires Skarsgård to portray a much more organised and military character.

Netflix has also decided to use Skarsgård's talents. In the recently released Cursed (2020), he portrays Merlin, a famous wizard who most of us will know. Even though the series has received quite a bit of criticism, it does enable Gustaf to show new skills. His next project will be The Emigrants, a Swedish series that revolves around a couple of Swedes who want to migrate to the United States. A return to his roots. I am confident in saying that we haven't seen the last of him just yet.

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