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Image Courtesy: Collider
For many casual moviegoers, it may have seemed like Bill Skarsgard had disappeared from screens. The 35-year-old actor is known for iconic roles like Pennywise in 'It,' the Crow, and Nosferatu—but those are just a small part of his diverse career, which also includes 'Barbarian' and 'The Devil All the Time.' Skarsgard points out that most of his characters have been ordinary people, even if the roles that gain the most attention involve heavy makeup or monstrous transformations.
Bill Skarsgard in 'Dead Man's Wire'
His latest role in Gus Van Sant's Dead Man's Wire, hitting select theatres on 9th January 2026 before expanding on 16th January, offered him a rare chance to deliver a stripped-down, magnetic performance. The '70s-set docudrama allowed Skarsgard to play Tony Kiritsis, an aspiring Indianapolis real estate developer behind on a mortgage.
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Image Courtesy: IMDb
Kiritsis wires a shotgun to his broker Richard Hall's head, demanding an apology, compensation, and immunity while law enforcement and national media converge on the standoff. The role demanded a type of performance Bill Skarsgard hadn't previously explored in America, mixing intensity, charisma, and absurdist humour.
Bill Skarsgard on Accepting 'Dead Man's Wire' Offer
Bill Skarsgard had initially been hesitant to take the role. When Van Sant sent him the script, he was on a long acting break after filming Robert Eggers' 'Nosferatu.' He worried about portraying the real-life Kiritsis, who was shorter and older than him, and spent around 50 hours studying the man. Eventually, he let go of strict physical accuracy and focused on honouring Kiritsis in spirit.
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Image Courtesy: IMDb
Time was tight: 'Dead Man's Wire' had been in development for years, with Werner Herzog once attached to direct and Nicolas Cage slated to star. Van Sant stepped in at producer Cassian Elwes’ urging, and Bill Skarsgard had just a month from agreeing to the role to filming. From casting to the Venice Film Festival premiere, the timeline spanned only about ten months.
The film's story felt eerily relevant during production. Just as Skarsgard prepared for the role, Luigi Mangione's arrest in December 2024 for murdering a CEO stirred public discussion around corporate greed, mirroring Kiritsis' vigilante actions. Skarsgard notes the parallels to today's societal unrest and loss of faith in institutions, saying the character channels this anger but remains intelligent and justified in his actions. He even joked that Kiritsis experiences a form of "male menopause," which adds humour to his volatile behaviour.
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Image Courtesy: IMDb
Filming of 'Dead Man's Wire'
Filming was fast and improvisational. Van Sant's first feature in seven years, the movie was shot in just 19 days with handheld cameras and no strict shot list, giving the cast freedom to experiment. Skarsgard and Dacre Montgomery had only four days to film the apartment scenes, the story's most intense sequences. The pressure pushed Bill Skarsgard to deliver, drawing out a raw and committed performance.
Skarsgard also benefited from a longstanding connection to Van Sant, dating back nearly 30 years to the Toronto set of 'Good Will Hunting,' which starred his father, Stellan. That familiarity helped him trust the director's vision.
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Image Courtesy: The Hollywood Reporter
After wrapping 'Dead Man's Wire,' Skarsgard immediately jumped into a completely different project, playing Little John in Michael Sarnoski's 'The Death of Robin Hood' opposite Hugh Jackman in Northern Ireland. Shaving his head and wearing a heavy beard, he spoke in a Yorkshire accent, proving just how versatile and resilient he has become.
Looking back, Skarsgard admits the back-to-back schedule was extreme, but it allowed him to fully immerse himself in two very different characters in quick succession.
