'Vikings' shieldmaiden to ‘The Sanctuary’ twins, Josefin Asplund says she loves playing challenging roles

You would probably recognize her as Astrid, the Viking shield maiden, mentee and lover of Lagertha, or as Pernilla Blomkvist in ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’. Her character’s journey on History channel’s ‘Vikings’ might have ended, but her feisty performance as the powerful Viking warrior will remain in our memories forever.

And now, the Swedish actor is all set to star in a Nordic thriller, ‘Sanctuary’, releasing in April 2020. Featuring in the suspenseful and intense psychological thriller, Josefin Asplund will star as identical twins: Siri and Helena who have a complex relationship. The series explores issues of survival, identity, trust and betrayal, pushing the boundaries of imagination.

We got into an up-close conversation with Josefin Asplund where she took us through her work and how it is to be a part of the past and present of the Nordic art and culture.

How was your experience of working in ‘Vikings’?

I got interested in this character and I really wanted to portray her because, she was obviously, very modern, straightforward, for her time, and she was a shieldmaiden. Personally, I love to work with my body, while I am acting and shooting. Like using a sword, for example; I find it amazing! As a female actor, you don’t usually get the chance to be physical and it was really fun to play a badass character. I loved doing these action scenes, how to use a sword, an ax, tumbling on the ground, being physically engaged and getting dirty. I enjoyed it all so much that I also got to do most of my stunts myself, except for the very dangerous ones
 
How did you transition from ‘Vikings’ to ‘Sanctuary’?

I always loved playing different characters as much as possible. It challenges and excites me as an actor when you go from one thing to then something completely different. My agent sent me the first two scripts of ‘Sanctuary’ and I immediately felt that this is something I would love to do. There’s this little dream you have as an actor; of playing different personalities and you can draw your own stance on them, defining how different each should be.

Tell us about playing opposite character/s on ‘Sanctuary’? What were your challenges?

This is the first time I am playing a lead on a TV show. Come to think of it, I have played leads in movies, but never on television and thinking that majority of the shooting days, it was my face on the screen.

The most challenging thing is to get into my mindset to play one character and then move into the other within hours. You have to shake off the other character to get into the second one; body language, mindset, personality, everything. And it can be a challenge because you should only be focused on one character and it can take a while to move onto the other. It was really tricky, but it was fun, because it was not easy and I don’t like things when they are too easy.

What do you want your fans to take away from your role in ‘Sanctuary’?

Oh, that's a good question to answer. I feel very happy that people want to watch what I do and that’s enough for me. But I'd also love when people love the work of the whole team, the directors and all. I believe this will be entertaining enough for people to get sucked in. Releasing at the time of quarantine, people can now be more invested in the show. I just hope that the audience like the two different characters, the contrasting shades of each.
 
On a parting note, tell us which one of your characters from Vikings, The Circle, The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, and now Sanctuary, remains your favorite and why?

Every one of these is my favorite and meant a lot to me. In the early years of my career, I did a movie called ‘Call Girls’, which was based on a true story where young girls were brought into prostitution during the '70s. I played the role of Sonja, which felt very important; to tell the story of these girls and what they went through. I often fantasize about living in a different time and I got that from Astrid as well. So, both put me in a time zone that I enjoyed.  
 
Watch Josefin Asplund in the all-new Nordic thriller, ‘Sanctuary’ premiering on April 23, on Sundance Now!