'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Alexander Skarsgård is a Swedish actor known for his chameleonic range and striking on-screen presence. He gained international fame as Eric Northman in True Blood and has since taken on complex roles in Big Little Lies, Succession, and The Northman, often portraying characters with a hidden, darker edge.
On March 17, 2023, Alexander Skarsgård sat down for an interview with The Guardian, where the actor reflected on his career. While promoting the unsettling sci-fi horror Infinity Pool, the Swedish actor made a sharp, matter-of-fact observation about cultural restraint. He stated:
“There’s a politeness to Canadians and Swedes.... But it’s all just a f*cking facade. Deep down we’re animals. We’re just very good at concealing it.”
Trending
The remark echoed a recurring theme in many of his roles, from True Blood’s charismatic vampire Eric Northman to the emotionally detached Lukas Matsson in Succession. Skarsgård has consistently inhabited characters who mask darker instincts beneath calm exteriors. But this interview offered a rare look into how closely those roles reflect his own views on identity and human behavior.
The timing of the interview also aligned with his return to more intense, offbeat roles. After years of alternating between Hollywood spectacle and prestige TV, Alexander Skarsgård used this moment to position himself again as a performer drawn to discomfort, contradiction, and inner chaos.
“I’m not saying that I dance around in a leopard-print thong… But I’m also not saying that I don’t” — Alexander Skarsgård about his role in Atlanta
The conversation with The Guardian opened with Skarsgård’s appearance in Atlanta, where he played a fictionalized version of himself. The performance was deliberately bizarre, crude, and self-deprecating. When asked how much of it was rooted in truth, he replied with a smirk:
“I’m not saying that I dance around in a leopard-print thong in front of girls I don’t know… But I’m also not saying that I don’t.”
That mix of provocation and ambiguity defined much of the interview. Skarsgård discussed his role in Infinity Pool, where he played James, a passive novelist vacationing at a luxury resort who descends into a world of cloning, chaos, and amorality.
The character’s arc, bland entitlement giving way to reckless indulgence, offered a direct metaphor for that “animal beneath the surface” Skarsgård spoke of. He stated:
“James is arm candy. His wife buys him all these expensive clothes....And he’s trying to play that part while wanting also to be this serious author.... He isn’t in touch with the darker side of his personality.”
Even off-screen, he seemed fascinated by the themes of duality. At one point, he joked about owning a prosthetic clone head from the film, using it to prank guests at his house. He also considered the idea that his character might not even be the original version by the film’s end, commenting:
“Maybe James has even been to the island already. Maybe he’s done this sort of thing before.”
Beyond the performance, the interview often returned to Skarsgård’s early doubts. He recalled working on HBO’s Generation Kill and feeling so insecure he calculated how much it would cost the studio to replace him mid-shoot. That imposter syndrome never fully vanished, stating:
“I was still convinced that every time the phone rang, it was my agent saying: ‘Pack your bags, you’re not cutting it.”
But instead of retreating, Alexander Skarsgård leaned into the discomfort. His interest in grotesque roles—racists, sleazeballs, even clones—was less about shock value and more about exploring the tension between appearance and reality. He said:
“Quite a few of the projects I’ve chosen deal with the juxtaposition of someone trying to function in modern society while also dealing with that atavistic primal question of who he is deep down and what happens when that flares up and can’t be suppressed any longer."
Where is Alexander Skarsgård now?
As of 2025, Alexander Skarsgård stars in Murderbot, a 10-episode sci-fi series on Apple TV+ in which he plays a self-aware android navigating human interaction.
He also appears in Pillion, a British drama premiering at Cannes, and has wrapped filming on The Moment, a mockumentary with Charli XCX produced by A24. Additionally, he is preparing for his directorial debut with The Pack, co-starring Florence Pugh. The film centers on documentary filmmakers in Alaska and is set to begin production later this year.
