Alexander Skarsgard has revealed fatherhood has made him take a step back from his acting career and he is grateful he can ‘say no’ to projects he doesn’t want to do.
The actor, 49, has a son, born in either late 2022 or early 2023, with his girlfriend Tuva Novotny, 45. The couple confirmed they had become parents when Alexander was seen carrying the baby in his arms during an outing in New York.
Speaking to Esquire UK for their Better Man issue, the True Blood star told how he is glad he didn’t become a father until he was in his late 40s.
‘I’m glad I didn’t have that responsibility when I started out and could just be selfish and throw myself into anything without taking other people’s needs and desires into consideration,’ he said.
‘That obviously changes when you have a kid and you have responsibility.
‘For example, with Murderbot my son was a year old when we started it, and it was shot in Toronto, but I was like, ‘I can’t go to Toronto for six months, so we need to look at the schedule, figure out a way I can come home and be with him, or when he can come out and be with me.’
Alexander Skarsgard has revealed fatherhood has made him take a step back from his acting career and he is grateful he can ‘say no’ to projects he doesn’t want to do
The actor, 49, has a son, born in either late 2022 or early 2023, with his girlfriend Tuva Novotny (centre)
‘But I’m grateful that I am in a position today where I can afford to say no to stuff and also make sure that, when I do take a job, it works for the family.’
Alexander comes from an acting family. He is the eldest son of actor Stellan Skarsgard and all his brothers; Gustaf, Bill, Valter and Kolbjörn are also actors.
Speaking about their careers, he said: ‘I don’t watch everything that they do, but it helps that I think they’re all incredibly talented.
‘I’ve honestly never seen one of my brothers or Dad and thought, ‘This is bad. I don’t believe this.’ I mean, we’ve all done stuff where you’re like, ‘This is not a masterpiece, but I get what you’re trying to do here and why you did it.’
While Alexander admires his brothers’s acting ability, his late grandmother wasn’t always as complimentary towards him.
‘Grandma was definitely not impressed. She’d be brutally honest, like, ‘Yeah, I saw that thing. That wasn’t very good. I could tell you weren’t really trying hard.’
‘And I’d say, ‘You’re right, Grandma, I was kind of winging it.’ But it also meant that getting a compliment from her meant a lot, because you knew that she wouldn’t sugarcoat anything,’ he said.
Before finding fame, Alexander moved to England to study at Leeds Metropolitian University for six months in his late teens.
Speaking to Esquire UK for their Better Man issue, the True Blood star told how he is glad he didn’t become a father until he was in his late 40s
‘I’m glad I didn’t have that responsibility when I started out and could just be selfish and throw myself into anything,’ he said
‘I’m grateful that I am in a position today where I can afford to say no to stuff and also make sure that, when I do take a job, it works for the family,’ he said
In one shoot for the magazine, Alexander sported a grey jumper wth blue corduroy shorts
The Winter issue of Esquire UK is out on 13 November
The actor recalled his time there as ‘fantastic’ and ‘grimy and intense’. He added: ‘It had a massive nightclub called Majestic with a one-quid-pint student night. Incredible.’
Alexander’s most recent film is Pillion, a drama about a timid gay man (Harry Melling) and a biker (Alexander) who start a BDSM relationship.
Discussing the filming experience, he said: ‘I sound really old now, but to be around a lot of young, enthusiastic, energetic film workers was really inspiring and created a special energy.
‘Obviously, they couldn’t afford to close off streets, so we were running around downtown Bromley with no security, just shooting guerilla-style. It was playful and fun and wild and, yeah, I loved it.’
The Winter issue of Esquire UK is out on 13 November.
