Nikolaj Coster-Waldau | |
|---|---|
 Coster-Waldau at the72nd Berlin International Film Festival, 2022 | |
| Born | Nikolaj William Coster-Waldau (1970-07-27)27 July 1970 (age 54) Rudkøbing, Denmark |
| Education | Danish National School of Performing Arts |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Josef Motzfeldt (father-in-law) |
Nikolaj William Coster-Waldau ([ˈne̝koˌlɑjˀˈkʰʌstɐˈvæltɑw]; born 27 July 1970) is a Danish actor. He graduated from theDanish National School of Performing Arts inCopenhagen in 1993,[1] and had his breakthrough role in Denmark with the filmNightwatch (1994). He playedJaime Lannister in theHBO fantasy drama seriesGame of Thrones, for which he received twoPrimetime Emmy Award nominations forOutstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.
Coster-Waldau has appeared in numerous films in his native Denmark, other Scandinavian countries, and the U.S. These includeHeadhunters (2011) andA Thousand Times Good Night (2013). In the U.S, his debut film role was in the war filmBlack Hawk Down (2001), playing Medal of Honor recipientGary Gordon.[2] He then played a detective in the short-livedFox television seriesNew Amsterdam (2008), and appeared in the 2009 Fox television filmVirtuality, originally intended as a pilot. He is aUNDP Goodwill Ambassador, drawing public attention to issues such as gender equality and climate change.[3]
Coster-Waldau was born inRudkøbing, Denmark, the son of Hanne Søborg Coster, alibrarian,[4] and Jørgen Oscar Fritzer Waldau (died 1998). He has spoken in interviews about his father's problems with alcohol, as well as his parents' divorce.[4] He has two older sisters, and was raised mainly by his mother.[5] He grew up in Tybjerg, a small village betweenRingsted andNæstved in southernZealand.[4][5] Coster-Waldau attended theDanish National School of Theatre and Contemporary Dance (Danish:Statens Teaterskole) from 1989 to 1993.[6]
Coster-Waldau made his stage debut asLaertes inHamlet at the Betty Nansen Theater. His role in the filmNightwatch (1994) brought him fame in his native country.[7] He then went on to play in Simon Staho'sWildside (1998), which he also co-wrote, and starred in Danish films such asMisery Harbour (1999).[8] He starred in his first British filmBent (1997).[9]
In 2001, he began his U.S. career inRidley Scott'sBlack Hawk Down asMedal of Honor recipientGary Gordon. Coster-Waldau says "My first U.S. movie wasBlack Hawk Down and a friend helped me put myself on tape up on the attic over my apartment in Copenhagen. We shipped it out and I got lucky."[10] Coster-Waldau used his success to take roles on both sides of the Atlantic, particularly his nativeScandinavia.[11]
He had a leading role inMichael Apted'sEnigma and played a villain in the action filmMy Name is Modesty (based upon theModesty Blaise comic strip). Scott brought Coster-Waldau back for the 2005 filmKingdom of Heaven.Richard Loncraine cast Coster-Waldau forWimbledon andFirewall.[7] In 2007, he played John Amsterdam, an immortalNew York homicide detective who becomes mortal after finding true love, in the short-livedFox television seriesNew Amsterdam.[12] As a result of filming that series' pilot, Coster-Waldau obtained hisScreen Actors Guild card. He later recalled in a 2015 interview inTV Guide, "Finally getting my SAG card was huge for me...I got so excited I went straight to the SAG online shop and bought four mugs with SAG logo. [I] still have those mugs!"[13]
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From 2011 to 2019, Coster-Waldau playedJaime Lannister in theHBO seriesGame of Thrones, based onGeorge R. R. Martin's fantasy novel seriesA Song of Ice and Fire. He commented about the character "What's not to like about Jaime? As an actor I couldn't ask for a better role".[10] For his role, he received several accolades, includingPrimetime Emmy Award,Screen Actors Guild Award,Critics' Choice Television Award,[14]Saturn Award[15] andPeople's Choice Award nominations.[16]
In 2011, he starred alongsideSam Shepard in Mateo Gil's featureBlackthorn, which premiered at theTribeca Film Festival.[17] Later the same year he starred in Morten Tyldum'sHeadhunters. The film went on to be the highest-grossing Norwegian film of all-time[18] and received very positive reviews including aBAFTA Award nomination forBest Foreign Film.[19] Coster-Waldau starred in the 2013 horror filmMama alongsideJessica Chastain, which then debuted at number one in the US box office[20] and grossed over $140 million worldwide.[21] He went on to play Sykes, a military weapons expert in thescience fictionactionthriller filmOblivion.[22] That same year, he co-starred withJuliette Binoche in Erik Poppe's dramaA Thousand Times Good Night.[23] In 2014, he starred inSusanne Bier's Danish thrillerA Second Chance as Andreas, a police officer forced to make a difficult choice.[24] In 2016, Coster-Waldau appeared in the action-fantasy filmGods of Egypt asHorus.[25]
In early 2017, he starred inE.L. Katz's dark comedySmall Crimes[26] which premiered atSouth by Southwest film festival on 11 March 2017,[27] to positive reviews.[28] Coster-Waldau then appeared in the Danish film3 Things, a thriller about a prime suspect of a bank robbery who negotiates the terms of his witness protection deal.[29][30] He starred in Roman Waugh's prison filmShot Caller, which premiered at theLos Angeles Film Festival on 16 June 2017.[31][32] Since January 2018 he has been theL'Oréal Paris global spokesperson for the company's Men Expert line of products.[33]
In May 2017, it was announced that he starred inBrian De Palma's filmDomino.[34] The film was released on 31 May 2019.[35] Later the same year he starred inSuicide Tourist by Jonas Alexander Arnby, which premiered at theZurich Film Festival.[36][37] That same year, Coster-Waldau launched a production company named Ill Kippers.[38] He starred inThe Silencing, a thriller directed by Robin Pront.[39][40]
He filmed in secret the movieThe Day We Died (Krudttønden) byOle Christian Madsen. The film is based on events surrounding the2015 Copenhagen shootings and was originally slated for release for late 2019.[41] It was released in Europe on 3 May 2020.[42] On 7 January 2021,Variety announced thatSamuel Goldwyn Films has purchased U.S. distribution rights for the film.[43]
He was to have playedMacbeth in 2020, in a production of Shakespeare's tragedy reuniting withMatt Shakman at theGeffen Playhouse.[44] On 15 April 2020, the Geffen Playhouse announced on its blog thatits production of Macbeth, among others, had been postponed because of theCovid pandemic.[45]
Although Coster-Waldau isnot religious, he was baptized and confirmed as aLutheran in theDanish National Church during his youth, like the vast majority of Danes, and viewed hisconfirmation as a big moment in his life when he first identified as becoming an adult.[46]
He marriedNukâka, a Greenlandic actress and singer, in 1997 and they live inCopenhagen with their two daughters[47][48][49] as well as two dogs.[50] Their daughter Filippa starred in a Danishshort film,The Girl and the Dogs, which was shown at theCannes Film Festival in 2014.[51][52] Their other daughter, Safina, starred as the main character Simone in the Danish Christmas TV seriesTheo og Den Magiske Talisman in December 2018.[53] His father-in-law isJosef Motzfeldt, a member of theParliament of Greenland and former leader of theCommunity of the People Party (Inuit Ataqatigiit).[54]
Although his father was a supporter ofArsenal, a trip to a match at theElland Road ground in the early 1990s persuaded him to become a supporter ofLeeds United, and he is a member of the Leeds United Supporters' Trust.[55]He published a very emotional video to thank Marcelo Bielsa, Leeds head coach in 2020, when the team was finally promoted to the Premier League again after 16 years.[56]
Coster-Waldau has supported theDanish Red Cross since 2003.[57][58][59] In 2016, he announced aGame of Thrones campaign-contest in order to support theRED foundation which aims to raise awareness and fight AIDS.[60]
"My main mission as UNDP Goodwill Ambassador will be to raise awareness and support for the Global Goals for a better future for all, which cannot be achieved without empowering women and protecting our planet,"
Since September 2016, he has been serving as aUNDP Goodwill Ambassador to raise awareness and support theUnited Nations'Sustainable Development Goals, an action to end poverty, fight inequality and stop climate change.[61] In 2017 Coster-Waldau partnered withGoogle, usingStreet View to document the impact of global warming in Greenland, in order to increase awareness and highlight climate change.[62]After participating in a female empowerment initiative inKenya, on the occasion ofInternational Women's Day in 2017, he wrote a pledge calling for all fathers to support gender equality and women's empowerment, including those women who live in extreme poverty and are exposed to practises like child marriage.[63] In September 2017, he was one of the speakers in The Spotlight Initiative, aEuropean Union-United Nations action to eliminate violence against women and girls,[64] after kicking off the women's amateur World Cup.[65] In October 2017, he travelled to the Maldives to report global warming effects, resuming his role as a United Nations Development Program Goodwill Ambassador.[66][67]
In early 2018, he and several other Danish artists signed a manifesto demanding zero tolerance for sexism, sexual harassment and sexual assault in the Danish film and stage arts industry.[68] In June 2018, he kicked off The Lion's Share fund's launch, an action in which when an advertising campaign uses an image of an animal, the advertiser will donate 0.5% of the paid media spending of that campaign to the fund.[69] In 2019, he travelled toRwanda to report the progress of the country, and toPeruvian Amazonia on occasion of theAmazon rainforest wildfires to offer insights into the effects of climate change.[70][71]
In 2024 he hosted the documentary seriesAn Optimist's Guide to the Planet, profiling innovative new solutions toclimate change.[72]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Nightwatch | Martin Bork | ||
| 1997 | Bent | Wolf | ||
| Hemmeligheder | Mads | |||
| 1998 | Wildside | Ossy | Also writer | |
| Nattens engel | Frankie | |||
| 1999 | The Cable Club | Rocker | ||
| Misery Harbour | Espen Arnakke | |||
| 2000 | På fremmed mark | Holt | ||
| 2001 | Enigma | Puck | ||
| Black Hawk Down | MSGGary Gordon | |||
| 2002 | 24 Hours in the Life of a Woman | Anton | ||
| 2003 | Stealing Rembrandt | Kenneth | ||
| The Bouncer | Svend | |||
| 2004 | My Name Is Modesty | Miklos | ||
| The Good Cop | Sune | |||
| Wimbledon | Dieter Prohl | |||
| 2005 | Kingdom of Heaven | Village Sheriff | ||
| The Headsman | Martin | |||
| 2006 | Firewall | Liam | ||
| Triple Dare | Martin | |||
| 2007 | The Baker | Bjorn | ||
| Wonderful and Loved by All | Micke | |||
| The Early Years: Erik Nietzsche Part 1 | Sammy | |||
| 2008 | The Kautokeino Rebellion | Biskop Juell | ||
| Himmerland | Thomas | Also co-producer | ||
| 2009 | At World's End | Severin Geertsen | ||
| 2011 | Blackthorn | James Jovin | ||
| Headhunters | Clas Greve | |||
| 2012 | Aurum | — | Executive producer only | |
| 2013 | Mama | Lucas / Jeffrey Desange | ||
| Oblivion | Sykes | |||
| A Thousand Times Good Night | Marcus | |||
| 2014 | The Other Woman | Mark King | ||
| A Second Chance | Andreas | |||
| Upstart | — | Executive producer only | ||
| Livsforkortelses Ekspert | — | Producer only | ||
| 2015 | Klown Forever | Himself | Cameo | |
| 2016 | Gods of Egypt | Horus | ||
| Chicken / Egg | Kenneth | Short film | [73] | |
| 2017 | Small Crimes | Joe Denton | [74] | |
| 3 Things | Mikael | Also executive producer | [30] | |
| Shot Caller | Jacob 'Money' Harlon | [75] | ||
| 2019 | Domino | Christian | [34][76] | |
| Suicide Tourist | Max Isaksen | [37] | ||
| 2020 | Krudttønden | Rico | ||
| The Silencing | Rayburn Swanson | [40] | ||
| 2021 | A Taste of Hunger | Carsten | ||
| 2022 | Against the Ice | Ejnar Mikkelsen | Also co-writer and producer | |
| 2023 | The Flash | Pizza Man | Uncredited Cameo | [77] |
| God Is a Bullet | Bob Hightower | |||
| Nattevagten - Dæmoner går i arv | Martin Bork | |||
| 2024 | My Fathers' Daughter | Himself |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Slaget på tasken | Christian | Television film | |
| 1995 | Who's Hitler? | Nattevagten | Television short | |
| Lyse tider | Television short | |||
| 1997 | Jacobs liste | Jacob | Television film | |
| 2000 | Lock, Stock... | Jordi | 2 episodes | |
| 2006 | Filthy Gorgeous | Alex | Television film | |
| 2008 | New Amsterdam | John Amsterdam | 8 episodes | |
| 2009 | Virtuality | Commander Frank Pike | Television film | |
| 2009–2010 | The Left Wing Gang | Jan Weimann | 5 episodes | |
| 2011–2019 | Game of Thrones | Jaime Lannister | Main role | [78] |
| 2015 | Saturday Night Live | Jaime Lannister | Episode: "Taraji P. Henson/Mumford & Sons" | |
| 2017 | The Simpsons | Markery (voice) | Episode: "The Serfsons" | [79] |
| 2023 | The Last Thing He Told Me | Owen | 7 episodes | [80] |
| 2024 | An Optimist's Guide to the Planet | Himself | 6 episodes | [72] |
| TBA | King and Conqueror | William the Conqueror | [81] |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992–93 | Hamlet | Laertes | Betty Nansen Theater | [9][82] |
| 1994 | Morgen og aften | Colin Henderson | Husets Theater | [9][83] |
| 1995 | Privatliv | Elyot | Mungo Park | [9][84] |
| Uidentificerede menneskerester og kærlighedens sande væsen | Royal Danish Theatre | [9][85] | ||
| 1996 | I en Fremmeds Øjne | Daniel | Café Teatret | [86] |
| 1997 | Paradis | Lars Emberg | N. Cederholm/Dante | [87] |
| Lovestory | Martin | Mungo Park | [88] | |
| 2000 | Drengene i Skyggen | Christoffer | Betty Nansen Theater | [89] |
| 2002 | Becket | Becket | Gladsaxe Ny Teater | [90] |
| 2009 | Øjeblikket | Betty Nansen Theater | [91] | |
| 2020 | Macbeth | Macbeth | Geffen Playhouse | [44] |
