Bill Istvan Günther Skarsgård (born 9 August 1990) is a Swedish actor. He is known for portraying Pennywise in the horror films It (2017) and It Chapter Two (2019), based on Stephen King's novel of the same name. Other horror appearances were the series Hemlock Grove (2013–2015) and Castle Rock (2018–2019) and the film Barbarian (2022). Skarsgård has also appeared in the comedy Simple Simon (2010), the thrillers The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2016) and Atomic Blonde (2017), the drama Nine Days (2020), and the action movies John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) and Boy Kills World (2023).

Early life

Skarsgård was born on 9 August 1990 in Vällingby, Stockholm, Sweden, the son of actor Stellan Skarsgård and doctor My Skarsgård. He has seven siblings, including actors Alexander, Gustaf, and Valter.

Career

Early work (2011–2016)

In 2011, Skarsgård was nominated for a Guldbagge Award for his leading role as Simon in Simple Simon. At the age of 21, he won the European Film Academy's Shooting Stars Award in 2012. Beginning in 2013, Skarsgård played the role of Roman Godfrey in the Netflix original Hemlock Grove. In April 2014, Skarsgård featured on the cover of Hero – a bi-annual men's fashion and culture magazine, shot by Hedi Slimane. In the issue, he is interviewed by his father. Skarsgård played Matthew in the science fiction thriller The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2016), his first major American film.

Breakthrough (2017–present)

He played horror villain Pennywise the Dancing Clown in the 2017 film It and reprised the role in the 2019 sequel, directed by Andy Muschietti. Speaking about what led him to casting Skarsgård, Muschietti said: "One second he can act all cute, and then the next, there's something ancestral and dark that just appears. His ability to transform is mind-blowing to me.” Skarsgård was a series regular on 2018's Castle Rock, as a young man with an unusual legal problem. That same year, he portrayed Zeitgeist in Deadpool 2. In 2020, he played Mateo in episode 4 of AMC's anthology series Soulmates. In 2021, he voiced the main antagonist Kro in Eternals. In the 2022 Netflix miniseries Clark, Skarsgård portrayed Clark Olofsson, the notorious Swedish criminal whose involvement in the Norrmalmstorg robbery gave rise to the term Stockholm syndrome. Skarsgård played the lead villain role of Marquis de Gramont in John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023). He was the titular character in Boy Kills World. He led the reboot of The Crow directed by Rupert Sanders. Skarsgaard said: "I had a great shoot, a lot of night shoots. … You're kind of preoccupied in a bleak state of mind for a while. I like to be consumed by it when I'm doing it. Actually, we were working out a lot, I found it really helpful. There's nothing like being tired and sweaty to get the demons out."

Upcoming

He has been cast as Count Orlok in the upcoming remake of Nosferatu. Speaking on his experience portraying the titular role, Skarsgård said: "It was like conjuring pure evil. It took a while for me to shake off the demon that had been conjured inside of me." He is also set to reprise his role as Pennywise/IT in the prequel TV series It: Welcome to Derry.

Personal life

Skarsgård is in a relationship with actress Alida Morberg. In October 2018, the couple had their first child. They had a second child in 2023. In February 2024, Skarsgård was arrested and fined for marijuana possession in Sweden.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations