In Denmark, its not so much the former meaning, so I think its a very appropriate title.
But thats not in our hands, so here we are.
That said, Mikkelsen doesnt judge Kahlen for his behavior.
Mikkelsen inAge of Uprising: The Legend of Michael Kohlhaas.Music Box Films/Everett Collection
He has no choice, he says.
He has to be determined to get to survive.
I think Michael Kohlhaas has a lot in common, he says.
Ive had tougher work, he says.
Which meant long days, but it wasnt the toughest shoot ever.
It was actually very satisfying.
Despite the strike, its been a good year for Mikkelsen, now 58.
Oh, they didnt overlap at all, Mikkelsen says.
They didnt overlap in the shooting period.
Thats the nature of those big animals from America, especially this one.
We were everywhere, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Why did he want to be a part of it?
he says, almost incredulous.
That was the first reason.
I want to be part of this.
Its a beautiful ending for this beloved character.
Did he think his career would take him this far?
It would have scared me away.
I hadnt graduated when I did the firstPusherfilm.
I was in school.
I became part of his team, and that was everything I could hope for.
If I had known that, I might have been scared off.
I might have just said, Hold your horses.
Which would have been cinemas loss.
When did he realize that his career was going international?
I was like, OK. Stuffs happening.
Its hard to imagine now, butCasino Royalewas in no way a sure thing.
Yeah, Mikkelsen says.
The irony of that is, obviously, insane.
Its hard for us to imagine that now.
If that was pressure on me, he must have felt it a thousand times more.
Then he showed them, and we were all high-fiving each other.
We knew it was going to be a good one, but it was better than that.
It was fantastic to be part of.
Whats it like being part of a huge franchise?
Does a cool Danish temperament come in handy?
I realized quite early that everybody is quite human on a film set, he says.
These international films have been a godsend, however.
Denmark is a small country, he says.
If you make one film a year, people get really fed up with you.
One film a year is two months work, right?
Obviously, you cant live from that.
I wanted a different kind of ending.
I didnt like the idea of dancing.
I thought it was wrong, I thought it was pretentious.
I was like, OK. Fair enough.
He was so right.
Boy, was I wrong and Im glad that he insisted.
I dont have a little Hamlet in me, he grins.
It is, however, no secret that Martin Scorsese is one of his biggest heroes.
I promised myself not to talk aboutTaxi Driver.
I just love that monologue.
I was super-lucky, he says.
Mikkelsen describes it as a family horror movie, which marks yet another departure for him.
Its a really charming story, he says.
Right now, though, theres nothing in the calendar.
I dont mind having a break, he says.
