Few actors have had a career quite like Sweden’s Stellan Skarsgård, who became a big Scandi star in his late teens, blundered briefly into softcore porn, then nearly gave up TV and film altogether for theater. Something pulled him back, however, and the 74-year-old is now one of the most sought-after actors in the world, routinely popping up in mainstream Hollywood films, starting with 1990’s The Hunt for Red October . But, somehow, Skarsgård never sold out; it’s hard to believe that the same man who made six dark films with Danish enfant terrible Lars Von Trier also dad-danced in both of the Mamma Mia! movies.

In Joachim Trier ’s Cannes hit Sentimental Value , which won the festival’s Grand Prix, Skarsgård plays Gustav Borg, the estranged father of stage actress Nora ( R

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