Bill Skarsgård to Play Clark Olofsson in Netflix Swedish Original

Netflix has lined up a new drama series about the Swedish criminal Clark Olofsson, who gave rise to the concept of Stockholm syndrome, managed to escape prisons and committed robberies all over Europe.

Olofsson, who has been referred to as a “celebrity gangster,” will be portrayed by Bill Skarsgård (It, Castle Rock). The Swedish-language drama, titled Clark, is based on the truth and lies of Olofsson’s autobiography. Across six episodes, the series will feature Olofsson’s early years until present day.

Jonas Åkerlund is directing. The production company is Scandinavian Content Group. Skarsgård is also among the executive producers.

Åkerlund said: “Clark is the story about the most politically incorrect man, who lived the most politically incorrect life. These are the kinds of stories I always look for. It’s an ultra-violent, witty, emotional, real and surreal biography to put a face to the name Stockholm syndrome, but it isn’t just about the Norrmalmstorg Robbery. It’s about his whole life and what made him who he is, the truth and lies of his incredible career. Bill Skarsgård is the perfect match for this and he will bring the Stockholm syndrome to the role. And Netflix is the perfect platform, they are not just the biggest streaming service, they also have the boldness to tell this incredible story.”

Skarsgård added: “Clark Olofsson is, for good and bad, one of Sweden’s most colorful and fascinating individuals. I accept this challenge with delight mingled with terror and think that with Jonas and Netflix in the back, we can tell a groundbreaking story with a pace and madness we may not have seen on TV before. Clark’s life and history is so incredible and screwed that it would even make Scorsese blush.”

Tesha Crawford, director of international originals for Northern Europe at Netflix, said: “We really look forward to continuing our great collaboration with Jonas Åkerlund and Bill Skarsgård. We can not imagine a better team to tell the complex story about Clark Olofsson and how he became one of the most controversial personalities in modern Swedish times.”