Stellan Skarsgard in King of Devil's Island
Stellan Skarsgard is an actor who moves from big budget blockbuster projects to indie movies with the greatest of ease - not to mention he tackled a wide range of roles during his career.
This week sees him return to the director's chair with King of Devil's Island, which sees him team us with director Marius Holst.
So to celebrate the release of the movie we take a look at some of the Skarsgard performances that should not be missed.
- The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
In David Fincher's American remake of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, which hit the big screen at the very end of 2011, Skarsgard took on the role of Martin Vanger.
And it was a perfect piece of casting by the director as Skarsgard played this character, a man with two sides so perfectly.
On one side he appears to be an ally to Mikael Blomkvist as the journalist investigates the disappearance of a family member.
Then on the other there is a real air of menace about him that Skarsgard really does nail towards the end of the movie.
The role of Vanger is a supporting character but the actor leaves a real impact with his chilling performance.
- Thor/Avengers Assemble
The role of Erik Selvig is one of the most successful of Skarsgard's career as he joined an ensemble cast for both Thor and Avengers Assemble.
While the role of Erik is not a stretch for the actor is any way shape or form he brings such humour to the character in Thor that works really nicely.
The movie looked fantastic and it is a lot of fun and having the likes of Skarsgard, Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins involved does give it some gravitas.
He reprised the role this summer in Avengers Assemble, leading the research team into the investigation of the Tesseract until he is enslaved by Loki.
Avengers Assemble has been a billion dollar box office hit this summer, going on to become the third biggest grossing movie of all time.
- A Somewhat Gentle Man
Skarsgard takes on the lead role of Ulrik in A Somewhat Gentle Man, which sees him team up with director Hans Petter Moland.
The movie follows Ulrik as he leaves prison after serving twelve years for murder where he must deal with his family and the snitch that ratted him out.
A Somewhat Gentle Man is an engrossing movie that has black comedy undertones that work incredibly well.
Skarsgard delivers a commanding performance and engaging performance in a movie that is unexpectedly charming.
- Insomnia
Erik Skjoldbjaerg made his directorial debut back in 1997 with Insomnia and Skarsgard lead the cast as he took on the role of Jonas Engstrom in the movie.
The movie follows detective Engström and his partner, Erik Vik as arrive in a small town to help the local police investigate the murder of a teenage girl.
But during the investigation Jonas accidentally shoots Erik and he must cover up his death as well as trying to solve one.
This is a cold and stark thriller that really does create and build up tension with every scene.
The film was remade in 2002 by Christopher Nolan starring al Pacino and Robin Williams.
- King of Devil's Island
Based on a true story King of Devil’s Island tells the unsettling tale of a group of young delinquents banished to the remote prison of Bastøy.
Under the guise of rehabilitation the boys’ daily regime is dictated by mental and physical abuse at the hands of their wardens.
The arrival of new boys Erling (Helstad) and Ivar (Magnus Langlete) spark a chain of events that ultimately ignite rebellion. King of Devil’s Island explores a sinister moment in Norwegian history that won’t be forgotten.
Other great performances from Skarsgard include Good Will Hunting, Melancholia, As If I Am Not There and Breaking The Waves.
King of Devil's Island is released 29th June
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw