Alexander Skarsgård did not have the 2020 the rest of us did. There was no quiet quarantine, no tubs of ice cream devoured at three in the morning, no existential boredom, no staring out the window as we wondered if we’d ever be able to start doing things again.
No, Skarsgård had to spend the year staying in the best shape of his life to play an honest-to-god Viking warrior and Nordic prince Amleth in Robert Eggers’ upcoming epic The Northman. Not that he minded, of course.
Skarsgård is in a very good place. Before The Northman, he filmed Godzilla vs. Kong, which was one of the most joyful experiences of his career. It’s a film that is much better than anyone could have hoped, that fixes the flaws of the previous outings of the franchise in Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla: King of Monsters by making its supporting characters actually interesting to follow—including Skarsgård’s turn as a conspiracy-loving mad scientist named Nathan Lind—and making the battle between the legendary behemoths the stuff of Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant.
Esquire Middle East caught up with the 44-year-old Swedish actor, who is aging like a vampire, fittingly enough, over Zoom ahead of the film’s release.
Read the full ESQ&A with Alexander Skarsgård below:
Alex, it’s great to see you again. How are you?
I’m pretty good. You’re in Dubai, right? I’m in Stockholm, Sweden at the moment.
How long have you been home?
I’ve been here for two months now since I wrapped The Northman.
How’s that been?
Yeah, it’s been really nice. I mean, it’s obviously a difficult time, but considering everything, I’m lucky, because everyone is doing alright. It’s a nice opportunity for me, as I’m constantly on the road normally. It’s great to just be home, and not just for a week around Christmas or weekend over summer. I actually get to be here and spend some real time with my family.
“Musicians in death metal bands tend to be the sweetest, loveliest people who talk about their grandmothers and stuff. Maybe it’s cathartic. It’s a way to get out all that dark energy onto the big screen or as a musician onto an album.”
You didn’t have any downtime in 2020?
Well, I was actually shooting for most of 2020. When the pandemic hit, I was in Belfast about to start filming the Northman, then we shut down for three months, and during that I had to train basically. It’s a very physical role, so I had to keep working out. I was still in work mode for the whole lockdown. Then in July, we started shooting till the end of the year.
Did you prefer it that way?
I was very grateful to be able to work. It was definitely different from the normal set because we were completely isolated. We got tested three times a week and I basically lived in a bubble up in the hills of Northern Ireland and didn’t see anyone didn’t do anything for six months other than work and sleep and train.
I have a friend Adlai who lives in that village in Northern Ireland and I kept trying to get him to go break into your set because I needed to know more about this movie.
It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. The most amazing experience.
You’ve been making a habit of working with great horror filmmakers, with Robert Eggers (The Witch) on the Northman, and Adam Wingard (You’re Next) on Godzilla vs. Kong.
What’s interesting about all these guys like Adam and Rob Eggers is they produce these really dark and twisted movies but they are two of the nicest human beings I’ve ever met. They’re so sweet and genuine.
What do you and Adam like to talk about?
Death metal, probably. He’s a big metal fan.
Are death metal people sweethearts, generally speaking?
Yeah, actually. Sometimes I feel like that’s sometimes the case when you meet musicians in death metal bands they’re like the sweetest, loveliest people who talk about their grandmothers and stuff.
Why do you think that is?
Maybe it’s cathartic. It’s a way to get out all that dark energy onto the big screen or as a musician onto an album.
Did you and Adam click immediately?
I met him years ago for another project. We didn’t end up working together on that but it was such a memorable meeting that we stayed in touch over the years. He’s not only a wonderful guy but so intelligent, such a film buff who knew everything about not only the horror genre, but even just films in general. When Godzilla vs. Kong came up, I was just really excited to get an opportunity to work with him.
Were the words ‘Godzilla’ and ‘Kong’ enough for you, or did something specific draw you to this one?
I think it was a combination. I had just come off of a couple of really dark intense projects. I did the Little Drummer Girl, which is a limited series based on the John le Carré novel about conflicts in the Middle East, and I just come off Big Little Lies, two seasons of domestic abuse.
Did you just need something different?
It was just really two of the most rewarding experiences of my career but also really, really draining really intense experiences. I was just craving something fun and exciting. I hadn’t done any big tent pole matinee-style movies and since Tarzan.
But you said it was a combination—are you also a Godzilla nerd?
Oh man, I was like a little boy. I just got giddy when I saw the renderings, the drawings, the storyboards, like the world that they wanted to create. I thought tonally they were the right people to make this kind of movie because I thought they had the balls to go all the way and make it as big and crazy and fun as it as I think it deserves to be, with the right amount of sarcasm and irony, but while still taking the topic seriously, and the characters seriously, and really caring about both Kong and Godzilla.
Did you and Adam share a lot creatively back and forth?
Oh, yeah. He would run up to me and ask what if they run into a creature that almost looks like an owl and start explaining how it works. And then you start sketching something on a piece of tissue. And then a week later, he would come back with something amazing that the visual artists have created. To be part of that from an early stage is so exciting to me.
As a pro wrestling fan, that balance of ironic and serious you mentioned sounds awfully familiar to me. Did you guys make a pro wrestling movie on purpose?
It’s a lot like pro wrestling. Like, you want the fights to be big spectacular, fun, and entertaining. But you want to care about the wrestlers, right? You want to root for them. I think Adam did such a great job in finding that tone. They beat the sh*t out of each other on an aircraft carrier, but you also want to connect with these creatures and care about them. The movie asks, what does Kong really wants other than beat up Godzilla? What is he longing for in life?
That’s exactly what I think when I watch the Undertaker throw Mankind off Hell in a Cell.
Absolutely!
Godzilla vs. Kong is in theaters now across the Middle East
