Lars Dittmann Mikkelsen (; born 6 May 1964) is a Danish actor. He is known for his roles as Copenhagen mayoral election candidate Troels Hartmann in the Danish police procedural The Killing, the character Charles Augustus Magnussen in the third series of the BBC programme Sherlock, fictional Russian president Viktor Petrov in the American political thriller TV series House of Cards, mage Stregobor on the Netflix series The Witcher, and Grand Admiral Thrawn in Star Wars Rebels and Ahsoka. In 2011, he won the Reumert Prize of Honour for his contributions to Danish theatre.
Early life Mikkelsen was born in Gladsaxe near Copenhagen. He and his younger brother, fellow actor Mads Mikkelsen, were raised in the Nørrebro district.Transcript of Part 1 of Documentary in German, transcript in English. After secondary school, he enlisted for military service in the Royal Danish Army. He then studied biology at the University of Copenhagen but gave up the course to earn his living as a street performer in European cities with his mime and juggling acts.
Career At the age of 27, Mikkelsen enrolled at the National Theatre School of Denmark from which he graduated in 1995. In addition to his role in the drama series released worldwide as The Killing, he subsequently appeared in two other internationally acclaimed Danish drama series, Those Who Kill and Borgen III. He also had a leading role in an episode of the BBC drama Sherlock as blackmailer Charles Augustus Magnussen. In the American television series House of Cards, he played the president of Russia. He won an International Emmy Award in 2018 for his role in Danish television drama Herrens Veje, which was broadcast in the UK in 2019 as Ride Upon the Storm. From 2016 to 2018, he voiced Grand Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo "Thrawn" in the third and fourth seasons of the animated series Star Wars Rebels. He reprised the role in the 2023 live-action Disney+ series Ahsoka and the 2024 anthology series Star Wars: Tales of the Empire.
In addition to his native Danish, Mikkelsen speaks fluent Swedish, German and English, and he has mastered various accents. He has stated that he and his brother first picked up English by listening to Monty Python records and learning the comedy sketches.
Personal life Mikkelsen is married to actress Anette Støvelbæk. They have been a couple since 1986 and married in 1989. They have two sons. He is the older brother of actor Mads Mikkelsen.
While filming the second season of Ride Upon the Storm, he went to see a priest and asked to be baptised into the National Church of Denmark.Lawson, Mark (30 January 2019) "Lars Mikkelsen: I found God after playing a boozy, lusty priest" , The Guardian. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1997 Royal Blues Henning 1999 Seth Seth Under overfladen Victor 2000 Kira's Reason: A Love Story(En kærlighedshistorie) Mads 2004 King's Game(Kongekabale) Peter Schou 2005 Nordkraft Steso's father 2007 Island of Lost Souls Necromancer Cecilie Lasse N. Damgaard 2008 What No One Knows(Det som ingen ved) Marc Deleuran Flame & Citron (Flammen & Citronen) Frode Jacobsen aka Ravnen 2009 Flugten Thomas Jargil Headhunter Martin Vinge Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role 2012 What Richard Did Peter Karlsen A Caretaker's Tale Per 2014 Montana Dimitrije When Animals Dream Thor 2015 9. April Lieutenant-Colonel Hintz 2016 The Day Will Come Frederik Heck 2017 Winter Brothers Carl 2021 The Venus Effect Klaus 2022 The Kiss Løvenskjold 2023 Asfalt Kim 2025 Frankenstein Captain Anderson Dalloway Post-production
Television Year Title Role Notes 1997 Strisser på Samsø Jens Fiskrt Episodes 1–4, 6 Taxa Drug addict Episode 8 2000 Edderkoppen Ole Madsen Skjulte spor Morten Theilgaard 2001 Langt fra Las Vegas Pirate captain Nikolaj og Julie Per Køller Episodes 10–20 2002 Rejseholdet Ivan Episodes 21–22 2004–2007 Krøniken Jens Otto Krag Episodes 2–3, 9, 11, 14–15, 17, 21–22 2007 Forbrydelsen Troels Hartmann 20 episodes 2011 Those Who Kill Magnus Bisgaard 2013, 2022 Borgen Søren Ravn Seasons 3 and 4 2014 Sherlock Charles Augustus Magnussen Series 3; 2 episodes 1864 Thøger Jensen Episodes 1–2 2015 The Team Harold Bjørn 8 episodes 2015–2018 House of Cards Viktor Petrov Seasons 3–6; 11 episodes 2016 Der Kommer En Dag Forstander Frederick Heck Season 1 2017 Historien om Danmark Narrator Herrens Veje Johannes International Emmy for Best Performance by an Actor 2019–present The Witcher Stregobor 6 episodes 2019–2023 Face to Face Holger Lang 9 episodes 2020–2022 Devils Daniel Duval 16 episodes 2021 Seaside Hotel Svend Damm 5 episodes 2022 The Kingdom Pontopidan 5 episodes The Dreamer – Becoming Karen Blixen Knud 6 episodes 2023–present Star Wars: Ahsoka Grand Admiral Thrawn 3 episodesNominated—Critics' Choice Super Award for Best Villain in a Series
Animated films/series/shorts Year Title Role Notes 2002 Naruto Zabuza Momochi, Hayate Gekkō Danish dub 2004 Tiger-brødre Aidan McRory2006 Arthur and the Invisibles Malthazar Danish dub The Wild Samson Danish dub2007 Go West! A Lucky Luke Adventure Lucky Luke Meet the Robinsons Uncle Art Danish dub 2009 Monsters vs. Aliens General O.K. MacMission 2010 Huset Anubis Hr. Van Swieten 2011 Ronal the Barbarian Volcazar Danish dub 2014 The Dam Keeper The Narrator Short 2016–2018 Star Wars Rebels Grand Admiral Thrawn 17 episodes 2024 Star Wars: Tales of the Empire Episode: "The Path of Anger"
See also List of International Emmy Award winners References
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