NEWS: JULY-AUGUST 2019

08.01.19:

Hans Petter Moland's film, OUT STEALING HORSES, premiered back in February at the Berlin International Film Festival. It has since opened in several countries. James Mottram of FilmInk posted an interview with Stellan last month regarding the film.

Is there some nostalgic element for you in the story of "Out Stealing Horses"?

Stellan: Not nostalgia, I’m not very nostalgic, but when I was a small child, I remember the horses pulling the logs in the forest, but as it said in the film, that’s what you do in the winter, not in the summer.

But no countryside specific connections?

Stellan: No. I’ve lived in the countryside, and then in the city, and then in the countryside, but I belong in the city. But of course, I have the smell of the forest, the sounds of the forest – all that, I have, but I’m not as connected to nature as Hans Petter fortunately is, because he’s an outdoor man and he has the relationship to the Norwegian nature.

So, you need the city?

Stellan: I need the city. I like people, I like good food, I like that I can walk to see new people, to get to a restaurant, to see a film, to go to the theater, and I like the pace of the city. If you look at me and Hans Petter, we’re totally different in terms of pace. He’s really slow, and I’m pretty fast.

Your character is really a man of few words. Is it hard to adjust to that?

Stellan: No, because since the Italian Neorealists and the Nouvelle Vague in France, we abandoned the word as the main communicator in cinema to the image, which is fantastic, I think. It took us away from the theater and the literary heritage. Hans Petter and I did a film called A Somewhat Gentle Man, I was playing the lead, and when I read the script – 40 pages, I didn’t say anything! It was wonderful. And I know other people that read the script and said, ‘Well, he’s not in there, this character’s not in the script!’ I knew he was in there.

Had you read the novel by Per Petterson that the film is based on, and was it something that you think could be adapted into a film?

Stellan: I had read a couple of attempts at transferring it into film, before Hans Petter was involved in it, they were not very good, because if you just do actually what’s happening in the book, then it’s nothing. It has to have the poetry and the presence of nature that Per Petterson has in the novel, and Hans Petter had that in the script. It was obvious that he was aiming for that, and knowing his relationship to nature, and knowing his skills, I was not that worried. But it was a risk; it could be your best film, it could be your worst.

And on a more person level, Stellan is asked about his favorite food.

Stellan: I don’t have one favorite dish, I eat everything… except, I’m not fond of the Swedish dish called Surströmming, which is rotten herring. They have something similar in Iceland which is rotten shark that you pee on first and then bury underground for a while. It comes out of poverty, but… I didn’t like tripe, for instance, for years, but it was such a complex taste, so I thought that if I only find the key I’ll enjoy it, and it took me 10 years, and then I found the key, and now I like it. But with that rotten fish, nah. I’ve given up on that.

Regarding his Emmy nomination for CHERNOBYL, Stellan told the press, "It is very fun that a series of this kind that deals with serious subject matter such as Chernobyl - and even about the world today, has received so much attention. It has neither zombies, supernatural things nor shooting." Stellan is now nominated in the same category in which his son Alexander won two years ago for his contribution in "Big Little Lies". Will he match this? Stellan replied, "Haha, this is a lottery. But I try to follow in the footsteps of my children."

07.16.19:

Stellan has received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for his performance as Boris Shcherbina in the mini-series CHERNOBYL. The disaster drama swept up 19 Emmy nominations, which included nominations for each of its three leads and director as well as for casting, production design, hairstyling, makeup and prosthetic makeup, writing and cinematography. Producer Craig Mazin said that he was "thrilled" adding "Our show was a labor of love by so many, so it was particularly gratifying to see how our cast and crew was acknowledged across the board. We all worked so hard to bring Chernobyl to the screen, and we're overwhelmed by this recognition by our colleagues."

Stellan has previously praised Johan Renck, the series' director stating, "He's amazing. You know, normally two or three directors work on a TV series like this, but he took it all and carried it on his shoulders with tremendous energy and desire. Then he has put together something that is very musical in some way. He has done a fantastic job."