''LIFE AND DEATH IS DRAMA. SO THERE HAS TO BE SOMETHING INTENSE IN THE FILM''
It would be tempting to say that Mads Mikkelsen – currently on a scorching hot streak – is having something of ‘a moment’, with two different (and really very good) character dramas on the horizon, and a role in another huge blockbuster verse in the can. Only, calling it ‘a a moment’ doesn’t take into account the fact that Mikkelsen’s been soaring like this for a couple of decades now, going from strength to strength since transitioning from a dancing career to make his feature debut in 1996’s Pusher.
One of Denmark’s greatest exports, the 55-year-old’s filmography has flourished on a diet of character dramas and the biggest mainstream properties imaginable: James Bond (Casino Royale), Marvel (Doctor Strange), and Star Wars (Rogue One). And he’s adding the Wizarding World of Harry Potter to that collection with Fantastic Beasts 3, replacing Johnny Depp as the series’ big bad, Gellert Grindelwald plus – announced as we went to press - he’s joining Indiana Jones 5. TV’s Hannibal also earned him a huge pop-culture cachet, playing the cultivated cannibal over three seasons.
This story is from the May 2021 edition of Total Film.
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This story is from the May 2021 edition of Total Film.
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