Þorvaldur Davíð Kristjánsson (born 27 September 1983), also known as Thorvaldur Kristjansson, is an Icelandic actor.

Biography

Þorvaldur was born in Reykjavík to journalist Kristján Þorvaldsson and Helga Jóna Óðinsdóttir, and first found fame as the voice of

Simba Simba is a fictional character in Walt Disney Animation Studios, Disney's ''The Lion King (franchise), The Lion King ''franchise. First appearing as a cub in ''The Lion King'' (1994), the character flees his homeland when his father, Mufasa, is ...

in the Icelandic language version of Disney’s 1994 film ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical coming-of-age drama film directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton. Produced by Walt Disney ...

'' and ''

Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated Musical film, musical Coming-of-age film, coming-of-age drama film directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts (writer), Jonathan ...

'' (2019). Subsequent voiceovers include appearances in ''

Toy Story ''Toy Story'' is a 1995 American animated adventure comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the first installment in the Toy Story (franchise), ''Toy Story'' franchise and the Firsts in animation, firs ...

'' and ''

Happy Feet ''Happy Feet'' is a 2006 animated jukebox musical comedy film directed and produced by George Miller and written by Miller, John Collee, Judy Morris and Warren Coleman. It stars the voices of Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Brittany Murphy, Hug ...

''. Þorvaldur has performed in many of Iceland's most renowned theaters, including The Icelandic National Theater and Reykjavik City Theater. He moved to New York in 2007 to pursue a BFA in ''The Juilliard School’s Drama Division'', where he graduated in 2011 as a member of Group 40. His education was fully funded by scholarships and through the personal assistance of the Academy Award winner and former Juilliard alumni

Robin Williams Robin McLaurin Williams (July 21, 1951August 11, 2014) was an American actor and comedian known for his improvisational skills and the wide variety of characters he created on the spur of the moment and portrayed on film, in dramas and comedie ...

. He also studied at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

in the UK, where he is a lifelong member of

Balliol College Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and ar ...

. Þorvaldur had his first leading role, in the feature film ''Svartur á leik'' (English: Black's game), a year after his graduation from

The Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

. When ''Black's Game'' opened in Iceland it became the biggest box office hit in 2012 and the 2nd-highest-grossing Icelandic movie in history. Þorvaldur's first Hollywood studio film was ''

Dracula Untold ''Dracula Untold'' is a 2014 American action horror film directed by Gary Shore in his feature film debut and written by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless. The plot creates an origin story for the title character, rather than using the storylin ...

'', produced by

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

Legendary Pictures Legendary Entertainment, LLC (also known as Legendary Pictures or simply Legendary) is an American mass media and film production company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull. The company has often collaborated with the major stu ...

and

Michael De Luca Michael De Luca (born August 13, 1965) is an American film studio executive, film producer and screenwriter. He is also the former president of production at both New Line Cinema and DreamWorks. De Luca has been nominated for three Academy Aw ...

. It was directed by

Gary Shore Gary Shore (born 1981) is an Irish film director, producer and screenwriter, best known for his directorial debut film ''Dracula Untold''. He has also directed commercials for a number of well-known brands including Gatorade, Adidas, and UGG. ...

and starred

Luke Evans Luke George Evans (born 15 April 1979) is a Welsh actor and singer. He began his career on the stage, and performed in London's West End productions of '' Rent'', ''Miss Saigon'', and '' Piaf'' before making his film breakthrough in the 2010 ...

Dominic Cooper Dominic Edward Cooper (born 2 June 1978) is an English actor known for his portrayal of comic book characters Jesse Custer on the AMC show ''Preacher'' (2016–2019) and young Howard Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with appearances in ...

Sarah Gadon Sarah Lynn Gadon (born April 4, 1987) is a Canadian actress. She began her acting career guest-starring in a number of television series, such as ''Are You Afraid of the Dark?'' (1999), '' Mutant X'' (2002), and '' Dark Oracle'' (2004). She also ...

and

Samantha Barks Samantha Jane Barks (born 2 October 1990) is a British actress and singer who rose to fame after placing third in the BBC talent show-themed television series '' I'd Do Anything'' in 2008. She has released three studio albums: ''Looking in Y ...

. Þorvaldur played Bright Eyes, an Eastern European taken as a slave as a young boy who became a vicious assassin in the

Ottoman Army The Military of the Ottoman Empire () was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire. It was founded in 1299 and dissolved in 1922. Army The Military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the years ...

. Þorvaldur has been both nominated for and won the

Edda Award The Edda Award is an accolade bestowed annually by the Icelandic Film and Television Academy, and is the most prominent film and television award in Iceland, awarded annually in February. The ''Edda'' has awarded for outstanding work in various cat ...

for his performances in various roles in television and film over the years. Additionally, he has participated in numerous theater productions, including receiving a Gríma Award nomination for his portrayal of Christopher Boone i
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
staged at the

Reykjavík City Theatre The Reykjavík City Theatre (RCT) ( ) is a theatre in Reykjavík, Iceland. History In 1989, after ninety years of performing in a small wooden building in the city centre, the company inaugurated a new theatre building adjacent to the Kringla ...

. In 2023, Þorvaldur was chosen as one of the European Shooting Stars at the Berlinale Film Festival. He has also received various awards and honors for his work in the field of acting, such as the American Scandinavian Foundation Cultural Grant and a nomination as an Outstanding Young Icelander by the JCI organization. Þorvaldur has published three children’s books. In 2023, he released his first children’s book in collaboration with Bergrún Íris Sævarsdóttir, title
Sokkalabbarnir: Ný Veröld
This book is the first in the 'Sokkalabbarnir' series. Two more books in the same series
Sóli fer á Ströndina
an
Grændís: Græn af öfund
were published in 2024. The series is designed for beginner readers. Þorvaldur received a scriptwriting grant from the

Icelandic Film Centre The Icelandic Film Centre ( Icelandic: Kvikmyndamiðstöð Íslands) is a public institution that was established in 2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties ...

to develop a television series based on the 'Sokklabbarnir' series. The series is currently in development.https://www.kvikmyndamidstod.is/kvikmyndasjodur/uthlutanir-ur-kvikmyndasjodi/2022/ Þorvaldur lives in

Laugardalur Laugardalur () is a district of Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. ...

, Reykjavík, with his wife and three children.

Filmography

* '' Reykjavik Whale Watching Massacre'' (2009) * '' Svartur á leik'' (2012) * ''

'' (2014) * ''

Life in a Fishbowl ''Life in a Fishbowl'' (, literally ''Hope Street'') is a 2014 Icelandic drama film directed by Baldvin Zophoníasson. It was screened in the Discovery section of the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. It was selected as the Icelandic en ...

'' (2014) * ''

I Remember You I Remember You may refer to: Music Albums * '' I Remember You...'', a 1980 album by Karin Krog, Warne Marsh and Red Mitchell * ''I Remember You'' (Brian McKnight album), 1995 * ''I Remember You'' (Jo Stafford album), 2002 * ''I Remember You ...

'' (2017) * '' The Swan'' (2017) * '' White Lines'' (2020) * ''

The Minister ''The Minister'' () is a 2011 French-Belgian political drama film directed by Pierre Schöller. Plot French Transport Minister Bertrand Saint-Jean arrives at the scene of a serious bus crash with many fatalities. He later attends a news inte ...

'' (2020) * '' Yes-People '' (2021) * ''

A Letter from Helga ''A Letter from Helga'' () is a 2022 Icelandic film written and directed by Ása Helga Hjörleifsdóttir. ''A Letter from Helga'' is a drama set in a remote fjord in 1940's Iceland, where a young farmer Bjarni begins an affair with his neighbo ...

'' (2022) * The Minister 2 (2024) *

Darkness Darkness is the condition resulting from a lack of illumination, or an absence of visible light. Human vision is unable to distinguish colors in conditions of very low luminance because the hue-sensitive photoreceptor cells on the retina a ...

(2024)
Útilega
(2024)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kristjansson, Thorvaldur Davíd 1983 births Living people Juilliard School alumni Thorvaldur Davíd Kristjánsson Thorvaldur Davíd Kristjánsson Thorvaldur Davíd Kristjánsson Thorvaldur Davíd Kristjánsson Thorvaldur Davíd Kristjánsson Thorvaldur Davíd Kristjánsson