Out Of The Shadows

The actor sounds off on his new spy series, playing the villain and why he’s considered leaving TV behind for good.

From his role as vampire Eric Northman in True Blood, to the abusive Perry Wright in Big Little Lies, Alexander Skarsgård has never shied away from sinister parts. “I think that I’m drawn toward darkness and conflicted characters,” admits the Swedish actor, 42. “I think that inner struggle is always quite fun to play.” Perhaps that’s why he was drawn to his latest role in the AMC miniseries The Little Drummer Girl. “It was an incredibly exciting character to play,” says Alexander, who stars as an Israeli intelligence officer in the spy thriller. “I hadn’t done anything similar to this before. It was psychologically very interesting to explore.” Here, Alexander opens up about his career and what the future holds.