Pilou Asbæk

Early life

Asbæk was born in Copenhagen, the son of gallery owners Maria Patricia (née Tonn) and Jacob A. Asbæk, who run Galerie Asbæk in Copenhagen. His mother was born in Casablanca, Morocco, to a Danish father and a French mother. His father is from Hammel. Asbæk has two older brothers, Thomas Asbæk, an art consultant at Asbæk Art Consulting, and Martin Asbæk, a gallery owner at Martin Asbæk Gallery.

Asbæk went to boarding school at Herlufsholm School, where he was active in drama productions. He graduated from Denmark's Danish National School of Performing Arts in the summer of 2008.

Career

Television

In 2009, Asbæk played soldier David Grüner in an episode of the second season of the Danish TV series The Killing (Danish: Forbrydelsen).

From 2010 to 2013, Asbæk played spin-doctor Kasper Juul in the critically lauded Danish TV series Borgen, written by Tobias Lindholm, about the politics of a female prime minister of Denmark. Asbæk's performance was uniformly praised by critics. In 2014, the Danish public-funded DR cast Asbæk as Didrich, a landowner suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, in a big-budget period TV series called 1864.

In 2016, Asbæk joined the HBO series Game of Thrones in Season 6 as pirate Euron Greyjoy. Asbæk also portrays The Mule in season three of the 2021 Apple TV+ television series Foundation. He appeared as Markus on Face to Face 3 (2023).

Film

In 2011, Asbæk starred in another piece by Tobias Lindholm, in the film R, as a Danish convict, portraying a harrowing prison experience. The film was shot in the Dogme 95–inspired style. The next year, in 2012, Asbæk starred in another Tobias Lindholm film called A Hijacking, about Somalian piracy, for which he transformed himself physically, gaining weight to imbue the role with method acting.

In 2013, Asbæk portrayed a flamboyant Danish tycoon named Simon Spies in the movie Sex, Drugs & Taxation (Danish: Spies & Glistrup). In this film, Asbæk co-stars opposite his wife's cousin, the actor Nicolas Bro, who plays the other main character, Mogens Glistrup.

In 2014, Asbæk starred opposite Scarlett Johansson in the Luc Besson film Lucy. Also in 2014, Asbæk appeared in the Bille August film Silent Heart (Danish: Stille Hjerte), in which his mother-in-law, Danish actress Vigga Bro, plays the character Lisbeth.

In 2015, Asbæk again collaborated with director Tobias Lindholm in the film A War (Danish: Krigen), playing a soldier in Afghanistan. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival.

Asbæk co-starred in the 2016 remake of Ben-Hur, starring Jack Huston and Morgan Freeman.

In 2017, he played Batou in Ghost in the Shell.

In 2018, he played Captain Wafner in Overlord.

Asbæk plays the lead role as police investigator Anders Olsen in Murderous Trance, opposite Josh Lucas. Written and directed by Arto Halonen, the movie is based on actual events. The plot revolves around the bizarre case of the hypnosis murders, which took place in Copenhagen in 1951.

In April 2021, he joined the cast of the upcoming superhero film Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom as Kordax.

In September 2021, Asbæk joined the cast of the Stephen King adaptation of 'Salem's Lot as Richard Straker.

Asbæk also voiced Mario in the Danish dub of 2023's The Super Mario Bros. Movie (dubbing Chris Pratt's voice-acting role as the video game character).

Theater

• 2008: Folk og røvere i Kardemomme By – Bellevue Teatret
• 2008: Core – Det Lille Gasværk.

Presenting

On 6, 8 & 10 May 2014, Asbæk co-hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 in Copenhagen, with Lise Rønne and Nikolaj Koppel. Some critics commented adversely on the obscure jokes shared by the presenters throughout the televised show.

Personal life

Asbæk's wife is playwright , who has been his domestic partner since 2008. They have a daughter, born in 2012. Anna is the daughter of the actors and and comes from an extended family of actors.

The nickname Pilou came from his mother's French ancestry and is a French version of the word "Pip." The nickname is because Asbæk was the youngest son, in French, "le plus petit" for littlest, "Little Philip." Pilou is an abbreviation of Petit Philippe.

Asbæk's godfather was the late artist Kurt Trampedach.

After having criticised what he considered too harsh refugee policies by the Danish government led by Social Democratic prime minister Mette Frederiksen, Asbæk joined the Danish Social Democratic Party in January 2022 to "speak up against it from within".

Awards

• 2010: Danish Film Academy – Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for R
• 2010: Danish Film Critics Association's Bodil Awards – Bodil Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for R
• 2011: Berlin International Film Festival – Shooting Stars Award
• 2012: Ove Sprogøe Prize.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

References

1. (20 January 2022). "Pilou Asbæk melder sig ind i Socialdemokratiet".
2. (4 May 2013). "Fancy a Danish? What about Pilou Asbaek – the man who plays Kasper Juul in 'Borgen'". [[The Independent]].
3. (17 July 2017). "Is Euron Greyjoy Hot Enough for You Now?". [[Vulture.com.
4. (18 June 2015). "Pilou Asbæk: Buy Art to Look At: Not As An Investment". [[The Big Issue]].
5. (15 May 2003). "Dansk Kvindebiografisk Leksikon – Patricia Asbæk".
6. (24 January 2013). "'Mad Men' of Northern Europe". [[Haaretz]].
7. (11 May 2013). "Borgen's Pilou Asbaek on his Somalian pirate film". [[The Scotsman]].
8. (5 November 2012). "Kom tæt på brødrene Asbæk". Eurowoman.
9. (25 August 2013). "Pilou Asbæk: Det er jo bare skuespil". [[Berlingske]].
10. (11 October 2012). "She Seems to Have It All, a Whole Nation in Fact – 'Borgen,' a Danish Political Drama Series, on Link TV". [[The New York Times]].
11. (4 September 2015). "The Perfect Binge-Watchable Show Finally Became Available in the U.S.". [[Vanity Fair (magazine).
12. (8 June 2015). "Pilou Asbæk Interview: "When You Play With National History, People Get Very Emotional"". [[The Big Issue]].
13. (14 October 2014). "From the Makers of Denmark's The Killing and Borgen: a Costume Drama". [[The New York Times]].
14. (2 September 2015). "Game of Thrones adds Lucy actor to play Euron Greyjoy – Update: It's confirmed.".
15. Petski, Denise. (21 March 2024). "''Foundation'': Cherry Jones, Brandon P. Bell Among 8 New Series Regulars For Season 3; Pilou Asbæk Joins in Recasting".
16. (16 June 2011). "Life in the Big House: The Danish Experience". [[The New York Times]].
17. (Fall 2013). "TIFF: Sex, Drugs & Taxation – The story of two oddballs and their chase after freedom – meet travel mogul Simon Spies and tax-evading politician Mogens Glistrup.". [[Danish Film Institute]].
18. (6 April 2015). "'1864' Star Pilou Asbaek Interview: Lars Von Trier, Scarlett Johansson And What Kind Of Role Model He Wants To Be". [[Huffington Post]].
19. (23 September 2014). "'Silent Heart' ('Stille Hjerte'): San Sebastian Review". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
20. (5 October 2014). "Film Review: 'Silent Heart'". [[Variety (magazine).
21. (Fall 2015). "Venice Film Festival. A War: Set in Afghanistan, Tobias Lindholm's drama illuminates the consequences of war on all its participants.". [[Danish Film Institute]].
22. (5 September 2015). "'A War' ('Krigen'): Venice Review". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
23. (21 January 2015). "'Lucy' Star Pilou Asbæk to Play Pontius Pilate in 'Ben-Hur' (Exclusive)". [[The Wrap]].
24. "Batou (Character)". IMDb.
25. "Overlord (2018) – IMDb".
26. "AMBI picks up Scandi thriller 'Guardian Angel'".
27. "'Aquaman 2': 'Game of Thrones' Alum Pilou Asbaek Joins Jason Momoa in Sequel".
28. Kit, Borys. (24 September 2021). "'Game of Thrones' Pilou Asbaek Joins New Line's 'Salem's Lot' In Key Role (Exclusive)".
29. Vennekilde, Thomas. (23 April 2023). "Super Pilou på nye eventyr: Fra skurk til helt". HerOgNu.
30. (2019-11-04). "Alting sker på en gang: -- et år med Pilou Asbæk". Gyldendal A/S.
31. "Pilou Asbæk – dansk film database".
32. Siim, Jarmo. (4 February 2014). "Koppel, Asbæk, Rønne to host Eurovision 2014". [[European Broadcasting Union.
33. (5 May 2014). "Pilou Asbæk: 'Eurovision is a party. I've never said no to a party'". [[The Guardian]].
34. (11 May 2014). "Eurovision 2014: Raunchy milk maids, giant hamster wheels and child abuse – the most memorable moments of the night". [[The Independent]].
35. (13 May 2014). "Pilou Asbæk Interview: "I Have to Get Through the Night Without Starting a War"". [[The Big Issue]].
36. (20 January 2022). "Pilou Asbæk melder sig ind i Socialdemokratiet". [[TV 2 (Denmark).
37. (13 February 2011). "Shooting Stars Initiative Showcases Rising European Stars at Berlinale". [[The Hollywood Reporter]].
38. (17 December 2012). "Pilou Asbæk vinder Ove Sprogøe Prisen". [[Politiken]].