Sven-Ole Thorsen
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| Sven-Ole Thorsen | |
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| Born | September 24, 1944 Copenhagen |
Sven-Ole Thorsen (born September 24, 1944) is a Danish actor, stuntman, bodybuilder and athlete. A physically powerful man, he once won the Danish "Verdens Stærkeste Mand" ("Strongest man in the world") competition.
Using his stature he often plays imposing giants and villains in his films who are somehow beaten by smaller opponents in a David and Goliath manner, but he has also played heroic characters such as Gunnar the legendary warrior in The Viking Sagas. His autobiography Stærk mand i Hollywood (strong man in Hollywood) was published on October 26, 2007, and was very well reviewed. The first printing of the book reportedly sold out in 24 hours.[1][2]
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Career
He is known for his frequent appearances in Arnold Schwarzenegger movies, like Conan the Barbarian, as the hammer-wielding Thorgrim; The Running Man, as the sympathetic bodyguard Sven; and in Predator, where he played a one-second role as a Russian General ('Knock Knock'). Some of his other most memorable characters have varied widely, from the gritty security guard La Fours in Mallrats, to the unbeaten fighting legend Tigris of Gaul in Gladiator, and the witty Lt. Michael 'Tank' Ellis, Ground Assault Unit in Captain Power, to the menacing alien villain Secundus in Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe, who is always hunting for the Anti-Life Equation without any success.
Thorsen has appeared in fifteen Arnold Schwarzenegger movies (as of 2006) (twelve as actor, three as stuntman or trainer), making him Schwarzenegger's most frequent collaborator. It began with Conan the Barbarian, when Schwarzenegger brought Thorsen and other of his bodybuilder-friends (like Franco Columbu) with him to shoot the movie. Later, when Thorsen moved to the United States, he met Schwarzenegger again while he was acting in the movie Commando. Thorsen helped with some of the stuntwork in that movie, and quickly found work in many of the subsequent Schwarzenegger films.
In spite of Thorsen's thick Danish accent, his voice is almost never dubbed (an exception being Hard Target).
Thorsen pursued his award-winning role as Tigris in Gladiator for over a year, beating Lou Ferrigno for the part. The part won him two TAURUS World Stunt Awards[3] in the ceremony's inaugural year.
Thorsen has founded various federations, including The Danish Bodybuilding Federation in 1979 and Cigar Night at Shatzi in Santa Monica, California along with Arnold Schwarzenegger. He has a black belt in Shotokan Karate, holding championship titles. Thorsen once won the Danish "Verdens Stærkeste Mand" ("Strongest man in the world") competition by powerlifting a massive 247 kilograms.
[edit] Personal life
Sven-Ole Thorsen is 196 centimetres (6 feet, 5 inches) tall and while appearing in Conan the Barbarian (1982) he weighed 138 kilograms (304 lbs), according to his autobiography (page 24 + 110) from which most of the following information is taken.
He has two sons, Michael and Martin, from his first marriage.
Thorsen met his second wife, the Swedish circus-artist, snake-charmer, pop-singer and athlete Anniqa (born Anniqa Järle) in the 1970s, when she married his close friend, boxing champion Hans Jørgen Jacobsen; Anniqa and Sven-Ole Thorsen were married in 1982.
On his fortieth birthday, Anniqa and Sven-Ole Thorsen decided to move from Denmark to the USA, which they did in April, 1985. The couple divorced in 1991.
Thorsen started dating Grace Jones in 1990, and as of 2007 they have maintained an open relationship. According to his autobiography, all his romantic relationships, marriages included, have been open relationships since the late 1970's.
In 1995, Thorsen started dating Erica Huff, daughter of the legendary soul-singer Leon Huff.
Sven-Ole Thorsen lives in Santa Monica in California and has two dogs, a Jack Russell Terrier named Jake and an American Bull Terrier named Cleo; he won the Danish "Show of Winners" Award of the Year 2006, honouring people who have a special affiliation with dogs.[4]
In his spare time, Thorsen creates wooden sculptures and enjoys art, which he showed in Danish magazine Euroman. He is also famously fond of a good cigar.
[edit] Films
| Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Between the Lines | unknown | in production |
| 2005 | Hostage | Hooded Thug Guarding Hostages (uncredited) | |
| 2004 | Hidalgo | The Laughing Raider (uncredited) | |
| Collateral | - | Stunt Driver Only | |
| Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story | Lumberjack hit by ball (uncredited) | Stunts (uncredited) | |
| In Enemy Hands aka U-Boat | U 429: Hans | ||
| 2003 | Timecop 2: The Berlin Decision | SS Body Guard | (as Sven Ole Thorson) |
| The Rundown aka Welcome to the Jungle | Goon (uncredited) | [1] | |
| Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle | Machine Gun Mongol (uncredited) | ||
| Masked and Anonymous | - | Stunts (as Sven Thorsen) | |
| 2002 | The Sum of All Fears | Haft | |
| Collateral Damage | Bomb Victim (uncredited) | [1] | |
| Hollywood Next 8 Exits | The Landlord | ||
| 2001 | Extreme Honor aka Last Line of Defence 2 | Baker's Bodyguard | |
| Route 666 | Russian Hitman | ||
| Bandits | Oregon State Prison Guard on Watchtower (uncredited) | ||
| The Gristle | Butcher Boy | ||
| 2000 | The Alternate aka Agent of Death | Secret Service Agent (uncredited) | |
| Gladiator | Tigris of Gaul (Tiger) | Won Stunt Award | |
| Facade aka Death Valley | General Schweinkopf | (as Sven Ole-Thorsen) | |
| Ready to Rumble | - | Stunts Only | |
| 1999 | End of Days | Thug (uncredited) | also Utility Stunts [1] |
| The 13th Warrior | Would-Be King | ||
| Foolish | Paris | ||
| 1998 | Winchell | German Man | |
| Soldier | - | Stunts Only | |
| Best of the Best 4: Without Warning | Boris | ||
| The Bad Pack | Sven | ||
| 1997 | Kull the Conqueror | King Borna | |
| George of the Jungle | Mercenary (Gunther) | (as Sven-Ole-Thorsen) | |
| Batman & Robin | - | Stunts Only [1] | |
| Back in Business aka Heart of Stone | - | Stunts Only | |
| Breakdown | - | Stunts Only | |
| 1996 | Jingle All the Way | - | Stunts (as Sven Thorsen) [1] |
| Bulletproof | Gunman at Motel (uncredited) | Stunts | |
| Eraser | Russian Gunman (uncredited) | Stunts [1] | |
| Fox Hunt | Huge man | ||
| The Undercover Kid aka How I Saved the President | Terrorist #1 | ||
| 1995 | Heat | - | Stunts (uncredited) |
| Mallrats | La Fours | Stunts (as Sven Thorsen) | |
| The Quick and the Dead | Gutzon | ||
| No Exit aka Fatal Combat | Darcona | ||
| The Viking Sagas aka The Icelandic Sagas | Gunnar | ||
| 1994 | A Low Down Dirty Shame aka Mister Cool | Thug (uncredited) | Stunts (as Sven Thorsen) |
| On Deadly Ground | Otto | (as Swen-Ole Thorsen) | |
| The Dangerous | Sven | ||
| A Little Tailor's Christmas Story | Schultz | ||
| 1993 | Hard Target | Stephan | |
| Last Action Hero | Gunman | [1] | |
| Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story | The Demon | ||
| Nemesis | Cyborg Interrogating Old Woman (uncredited) | Stunts | |
| Nowhere to Run | Prisoner | ||
| Cyborg 2 | Doorman | (as Sven Thorsen) | |
| 1992 | Bram Stoker's Dracula | - | Stunts (as Sven Thorsen) |
| Lethal Weapon 3 | Henchman #2 | ||
| Dead On: Relentless II aka Relentless II: Dead On | Mechanic (Patrick Vergano) | Stunts | |
| Death Becomes Her | - | Stunts (uncredited) | |
| 1991 | Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man | David | |
| Abraxas, Guardian of the Universe | Secundus | ||
| 1990 | Total Recall | - | Trainer [1] |
| The Hunt for Red October | Russian Chief of the Red October | ||
| 1989 | Ghostbusters II | - | Stunts |
| Pink Cadillac | Birthright Thug | ||
| 1988 | Twins | Sam Klane | [1] |
| Red Heat | Nikolai | [1] | |
| 1987 | Overboard | Olaf, Stayton Flunky (uncredited) | |
| The Running Man | Sven | (as Sven Thorsen) [1] | |
| Predator | Russian Officer (uncredited) | [1] | |
| Lethal Weapon | Mercenary | (as Sven Thorsen) | |
| 1986 | Raw Deal aka Triple Identity | Patrovita's Bearded Bodyguard (uncredited) | Stunts [1] |
| Red Sonja | - | Stunts (uncredited) [1] | |
| 1984 | Conan the Destroyer | Togra | (as Sven Ole Thorsen) [1] |
| 1982 | Conan the Barbarian | Thorgrim | (as Sven Ole Thorsen) [1] |
| 1977 | Pas på ryggen, professor (Mind Your Back, Professor) | (Russisk) Håndlanger |
Notes
- 1 ^ Arnold Schwarzenegger also appeared in this movie.
[edit] Television
| Date | Title | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 February 2006 | Go' Aften Danmark | as Himself | |
| 17 February 2006 | 2 Kaffe, Tak | as Himself | [1] |
| 3 February 2006 | Showtime | as Himself | Episode #2.1 |
| 27 December 2005 | Go'morgen Danmark | as Himself | |
| 1 December 2000 | Helle for Høgsbro | as Himself | "Dovenskab" (episode # 1.13) |
| 1999 | Biker-Jens i USA | as Himself | episode "Hos Sven-Ole Thorsen" |
| 28 September 1998 | Baywatch | "Hans Ulpan" | "Crash: Part 2" (episode # 9.2) |
| 21 September 1998 | Baywatch | "Hans Ulpan" | "Crash: Part 1" (episode # 9.1) |
| 1 February 1998 | Mike Hammer, Private Eye | "Rolf" (as Sven Ole Thorsen) | "The Art of Murder" (episode # 2.3) |
| 18 March 1997 | The Guardian | "Baiya" | "Pilot" (episode # 1.1) |
| 8 February 1997 | Baywatch Nights | "Viking" | "Frozen Out of Time" (episode # 2.13) |
| 11 May 1991 | The Flash | "Cyborg Omega" | "Alpha" (episode # 1.19) |
| 1987 | Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future | Lt. Michael 'Tank' Ellis | Entire series |
| 17 October 1986 | The A-Team | "Rolf" | "Quarterback Sneak" (episode # 5.4) |
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Sven-Ole Thorsen at the Internet Movie Database
- Sven-Ole Thorsen Official site (in Danish).
