Pick your favourite franchise: James Bond, Indiana Jones, Hannibal Lecter… Fantastic Beasts? Regardless of which one you go for, you’ll come across Mads Mikkelsen. The magnetic Danish actor is everywhere, adding a suave, steely intensity that so few others can provide. It’s that unique mix that brought Mikklesen and luxury Italian fashion house Zegna together, with the actor taking his role as its face and global ambassador.
Esquire Middle East caught up backstage at the Zegna Autumn-Winter 2025 fashion show in Milan to talk to acting, tailoring and perfecting the life juggle
ESQUIRE: An impressive show today. Do you get to see any of the collection before the runway show?
MADS MIKKELSEN: I get to see some bits, obviously I’m dressed in one of the looks from the show, but not in its entirety. So, it is still magical when I see it, just like it is for everyone else. I feel a lot of shows can be extreme, and so there might only be one or two pieces you could wear. But not with Zegna, today I felt like every piece, it was beautiful. You could literally take every look and wear it so easily.
ESQUIRE: What caught your eye?
MADS MIKKELSEN: There was quite a few things. The first few English vintage themed looks just needed a farm somewhere and a bicycle and I would feel at home. I need to get them. There was also a suede jacket with some fur inside, a brown suede jacket that was beautiful. Or the tailored high waisted trousers that they do so well are always great.
ESQUIRE: You’ve been in a few Zegna brand campaigns now, do you enjoy the campaign shoots?
MADS MIKKELSEN: Yeah, I really do. It’s different world. Obviously, what I normally do is on the screen, and we talk on film whereas photo shoots are almost instant, they capture a moment. But it’s easy with Zegna, because they stylise it with this Italian dreamy feel, so you feel like you’re on a film set.
ESQUIRE: Now it must just feel like working with family.
MADS MIKKELSEN: I mean, it is a family business, literally. It’s getting easier with each campaign. And they are just super welcoming people and really very sweet. So, it makes it all simple, and dare I say it, fun to work together.
ESQUIRE: If there is one thing Zegna knows how to do well, it’s a suit. How important is a suit in a men’s wardrobe?
MADS MIKKELSEN: Oh, super important. The power of a suit. Some people always wear one, some people only very rarely but regardless, when you step into a good suit you become a different character. It’s just something fantastic.
ESQUIRE: Have you always been interested in fashion?
MADS MIKKELSEN: Only in a casual way. I’ve always been somebody who’s ready to play ball, so I’ve always been dressed for physical activity. The older I get, the more I started to come to the shows and suddenly you see it around you, the impact of fashion and you get more and more attached to it.
ESQUIRE: You have an esteemed, successful career. Is there still a career goal you want to reach?
MADS MIKKELSEN: My goals remain the same. They have not changed from the very first day I started working and that is to create a brilliant story, with some brilliant people. That’s always the goal. Sometimes you achieve it, sometimes you don’t, but it’s a simple goal that helps keep me focused.
ESQUIRE: But have any of your aspirations changed as you became more successful?
MADS MIKKELSEN: I’m a little pickier about which projects I do now, what you say yes to. But to be honest I have always been super picky with everything I’ve done. I realised early in my life that if I wasn’t motivated by the project, I would not be able to achieve anything great with it. I wouldn’t be of service to anyone. So, I always needed to be in love with the project. It has always been the case for me, passion is key.
ESQUIRE: Opportunities for you continue to stream in, films, fashion campaigns etc. As you get older, do you find any challenges staying as relevant, or getting access to those jobs in Hollywood? Is that a challenge you’ve ever felt as a man?
MADS MIKKELSEN: I have never really thought about it. I do know there’s obviously an age cap somewhere. It follows men less than women, which is unfair in many, many ways because there’s so many brilliant female actresses out there, with not enough roles for their talent. Men don’t have the same challenge I don’t think, or at least not to the same level. So, I’ve never worried about it. For me, it’s just been another stage in my life, and we’ll see what comes out of it. There will be an end to everything one day.
ESQUIRE: Outside of this successful career, how do you manage to switch off? When you’re not front row at a fashion show or working on a movie?
MADS MIKKELSEN: I do a lot of physical activity and sports. Racing bikes, sprinting and many other interests like these – it helps me to switch off. Also, construction stuff. I really like to design house interiors and the building infrastructure. I have a summer house that is almost 100 years old that I’m currently restoring to its original state.
ESQUIRE: Any advice for our readers on how to do the life juggle? You’re successful, you have the family, the business, the passion projects. How can you do it all and stay sane?
MADS MIKKELSEN: My ambition has always been to be in the present and make this moment worthwhile. What we’re doing in that instant might become a career later, but if you’re focusing on the future constantly, you forget to be in the present and can never give anything your all. And I think that’s one way to get the juggle right, less planning and more living.