# Pilou Asbæk
**Pilou Asbæk** (full name Johan Philip Asbæk, born 1982) is a Danish actor known in Denmark for the prison drama *R* and the political series *Borgen*, and internationally for playing Euron Greyjoy in *Game of Thrones* and Batou in *Ghost in the Shell*.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1982, Copenhagen, Denmark; son of Patricia and Jacob Asbæk[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k) |
| Training | Graduated from the Danish National School of Performing Arts (Statens Teaterskole) in 2008[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/bio/) |
| Breakthrough | Inmate Rune in the prison drama *R* (2010); Bodil and Robert for Best Actor, 2011[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k) |
| Signature TV roles | Spin doctor Kasper Juul in *Borgen* (2010–2013); Euron Greyjoy in *Game of Thrones* from 2016[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k) • [3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek) |
| International films | *Lucy* (2014), *Ben-Hur* (2016, Pontius Pilate), *Ghost in the Shell* (2017, Batou)[4](https://www.danskefilm.dk/skuespiller.php?id=8821) |
| Honors | Shooting Star at the 2011 Berlin Film Festival; Cheval Noir Best Actor at Fantasia 2026[5](https://www.filmmakers.eu/en/actors/pilou-asbaek) |
| Awards total | 7 wins and 18 nominations per IMDb[6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/awards/) |
## Training and Danish breakthrough
Asbæk entered Denmark's National School of Theatre (later part of the Danish National School of Performing Arts) in 2004 and graduated in 2008[3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek). His first professional job, while still a student, was as a clown at the Bakken amusement park, where he recalled being pelted with beer cans for a month[3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek). His film debut came as Teis in Niels Arden Oplev's *To verdener* (*Worlds Apart*), which the Danish encyclopedia Lex dates to 2009[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k).
**R and the Lindholm collaboration.** In 2010 he played the inmate Rune in *R*, the prison film directed by Michael Noer and Tobias Lindholm, appearing as the only professional actor among authentic participants; the role brought him both a Robert (Danish Film Academy) and a Bodil (Danish Critics' Association) as Best Male Lead of 2011[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k). The same performance made him a [Shooting Star](https://www.edgepedia.org/shooting-star), an honor given to ten European actors each year, at the 2011 Berlinale[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/bio/) • [5](https://www.filmmakers.eu/en/actors/pilou-asbaek).
His work with Lindholm became the spine of his Danish film career. He played a ship's cook held captive by Somali pirates in *A Hijacking* (Kapringen, 2012), a soldier deployed to Afghanistan in *A War* (Krigen, 2015), and a second lieutenant in *April 9th* (2015); of their four films together, three earned him Robert nominations[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k) • [3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek). In 2015 he won the Bodil for Best Supporting Actor for Bille August's *Silent Heart* (Stille hjerte, 2014)[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/awards/).
## Television: Borgen and beyond
Asbæk became a household name in Denmark as Kasper Juul, the prime minister's spin doctor with a dark family background, in DR's political drama *Borgen* (2010–2013)[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k). Lindholm, who wrote several episodes of the series, recommended him for the part[3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek). At its height the series drew a full third of Danish television viewers on Sunday nights[7](https://www.dfi.dk/sites/default/files/docs/2018-02/FILM75_singlepage%20%281%29.pdf). He later played Didrich in the historical series *1864* (2014) and prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen in *The Investigation* (Efterforskningen, 2020), which brought a Robert nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a TV series in 2021[4](https://www.danskefilm.dk/skuespiller.php?id=8821) • [5](https://www.filmmakers.eu/en/actors/pilou-asbaek).
## International career
Asbæk's move into English-language work included *The Whistleblower* (2010), [Luc Besson](https://www.edgepedia.org/luc-besson)'s *[Lucy](https://www.edgepedia.org/lucy-2014-film)* (2014) opposite [Scarlett Johansson](https://www.edgepedia.org/scarlett-johansson), Pontius Pilate in *Ben-Hur* (2016), *The Great Wall* (2017), and Batou in the manga adaptation *Ghost in the Shell* (2017), again opposite Johansson[4](https://www.danskefilm.dk/skuespiller.php?id=8821) • [3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek). He also appeared in *Overlord* (2018), *Outside the Wire* (2021), *Uncharted* (2022), *Samaritan* (2022), and *I.S.S* (2023)[4](https://www.danskefilm.dk/skuespiller.php?id=8821).
**Euron Greyjoy.** He joined *Game of Thrones* in 2016 as Euron Greyjoy, Theon Greyjoy's uncle, and played the role through season seven[3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek) • [4](https://www.danskefilm.dk/skuespiller.php?id=8821). In a 2017 interview with *Time*, he said he had worked with writers [David Benioff](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-benioff) and D.B. Weiss to remake the character for season seven, asking to make him "rock and roll" with a new leather costume and a vicious sense of humor[8](https://time.com/4875081/game-of-thrones-euron-grejoy-cersei/). The ensemble cast received Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2018 and 2020[6](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/awards/).
**Foundation.** In the Apple TV+ series *[Foundation](https://www.edgepedia.org/foundation-tv-series)*, Asbæk took over the role of The Mule in season three from Swedish actor [Mikael Persbrandt](https://www.edgepedia.org/mikael-persbrandt), telling Tom's Guide that Scandinavian rivalry gave the part some national pride[9](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/apple-tv-plus/i-interviewed-the-cast-of-foundation-season-3-heres-my-10-biggest-takeaways-for-the-upcoming-season).
## Recent and upcoming work
In 2026 he won the Cheval Noir Award for Best Actor at the Fantasia International Film Festival for *No Rest for the Wicked*, in which he plays Helge[5](https://www.filmmakers.eu/en/actors/pilou-asbaek) • [10](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/?showAllCredits=true). He leads the Amazon police series *Slangedræber* (Snake Killer) as Brian "Smiley" Petersen; the series leads the Danish Series Awards with eight nominations, including Best Acting Performance for Asbæk, with the ceremony set for 5 November in Aarhus[4](https://www.danskefilm.dk/skuespiller.php?id=8821) • [11](https://soundvenue.com/film/2026/10/pilou-asbaeks-patrulje-dominerer-dansk-seriepris-se-de-nominerede-697709). Upcoming films in post-production include *The Thomas Crown Affair* and *[Blood on Snow](https://www.edgepedia.org/blood-on-snow-film)*, both slated for 2027[10](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/?showAllCredits=true).
## Personal life
Asbæk grew up in a half-French household in Copenhagen; his mother Patricia is French, and his father Jacob is Danish[1](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k) • [3](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek). He married the actress and writer Anna Bro on 12 August 2015; their daughter Agnes was born in 2012[12](https://www.filmweb.pl/person/Pilou%2BAsb%C3%A6k-812525/biography). A book about a year in his life, *Alting sker på en gang – Et år med Pilou Asbæk* by journalist Kristoffer Zøllner, was published in November 2019[13](https://www.gyldendal.dk/forfattere/pilou-asbak-F144692).
## References
1. [Pilou Asbæk, Lex (Den Store Danske), Hans Christian Nørregaard](https://lex.dk/Pilou_Asb%C3%A6k)
2. [Pilou Asbæk – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/bio/)
3. [Pilou Asbæk, Interview Magazine, Emma Brown, April 7, 2017](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/pilou-asbaek)
4. [Pilou Asbæk, danskfilm.dk](https://www.danskefilm.dk/skuespiller.php?id=8821)
5. [Pilou Asbaek, Filmmakers Europe](https://www.filmmakers.eu/en/actors/pilou-asbaek)
6. [Pilou Asbæk – Awards, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/awards/)
7. [Actor profile: Pilou Asbæk & Søren Malling, FILM#75, Danish Film Institute](https://www.dfi.dk/sites/default/files/docs/2018-02/FILM75_singlepage%20%281%29.pdf)
8. [Game of Thrones' Pilou Asbæk Predicts a Surprising Future for Euron and Cersei, Time, Eliana Dockterman, July 27, 2017](https://time.com/4875081/game-of-thrones-euron-grejoy-cersei/)
9. [I interviewed the cast of 'Foundation' season 3, Tom's Guide, July 11, 2025](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/apple-tv-plus/i-interviewed-the-cast-of-foundation-season-3-heres-my-10-biggest-takeaways-for-the-upcoming-season)
10. [Pilou Asbæk, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1561982/?showAllCredits=true)
11. [Pilou Asbæks patrulje dominerer dansk seriepris, Soundvenue, October 2026](https://soundvenue.com/film/2026/10/pilou-asbaeks-patrulje-dominerer-dansk-seriepris-se-de-nominerede-697709)
12. [Pilou Asbæk biography, Filmweb](https://www.filmweb.pl/person/Pilou%2BAsb%C3%A6k-812525/biography)
13. [Pilou Asbæk, Gyldendal author page](https://www.gyldendal.dk/forfattere/pilou-asbak-F144692)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › Nordic actors*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license