Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson (English transliteration: Thröstur Leó Gunnarsson; born 23 April 1961 in

Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...

), is an Icelandic stage, film and television actor.

Early life

Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson graduated from the Icelandic School of Drama in 1985. He then began his career onstage at the Leikfélag Reykjavíkur, Reykjavik's premier theatre company, where he appeared in productions as:

John Steinbeck John Ernst Steinbeck ( ; February 27, 1902 – December 20, 1968) was an American writer. He won the 1962 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his realistic and imaginative writings, combining as they do sympathetic humor and keen social percep ...

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The Grapes of Wrath ''The Grapes of Wrath'' is an American realist novel written by John Steinbeck and published in 1939. The book won the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and it was cited prominently when Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize ...

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William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

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Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

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Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, ; ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the great writers in the French language and world liter ...

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Tartuffe ''Tartuffe, or The Impostor, or The Hypocrite'' (; , ), first performed in 1664, is a theatrical comedy (or more specifically, a farce) by Molière. The characters of Tartuffe, Elmire, and Orgon are considered among the greatest classical theat ...

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Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

's '' Platonov'' and Birgir Sigurðsson's .

Stage and film career

Þröstur's first film role came in the 1986 Hilmar Oddsson-directed drama ''Eins og skepnan deyr'' (English release title: ''The Beast''). He then followed in a number of films and television movies. He is possibly best recalled internationally for his roles in

Baltasar Kormákur Baltasar Kormákur Baltasarsson is an Icelandic actor, theatre and film director, and film producer. He is best known for directing the films '' 101 Reykjavík'', '' The Sea'', '' A Little Trip to Heaven'', ''Contraband'', '' 2 Guns'', ''Eve ...

's 2000 romantic comedy ''

101 Reykjavík ''101 Reykjavík'' () is a 2000 Icelandic romantic comedy film directed by Baltasar Kormákur and starring Victoria Abril and Hilmir Snær Guðnason. It is based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Hallgrímur Helgason,Hallgrímur Helgason, ...

'', opposite Spanish actress

Victoria Abril Victoria Mérida Rojas (born 4 July 1959), better known as Victoria Abril, is a Spanish film actress and singer based in France. She is possibly best known to international audiences for her performance in the film '' Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!'' b ...

, Kormákur's 2002 drama ''

Hafið ''The Sea'', ( Icelandic: ''Hafið'' ()), is a 2002 Icelandic comedy drama film, directed by Baltasar Kormákur. The film tells the story of a wealthy Icelandic family, owners of a fish industry company in a small Icelandic coastal town, and vari ...

'' (English release title: ''The Sea''), 2002's United States/Icelandic coproduction of '' No Such Thing'', a bilingual fantasy starring

Sarah Polley Sarah Ellen Polley (born January 8, 1979) is a Canadian filmmaker, writer, political activist and actress.Howell, Peter (September 24, 199"Nobody's Starlet: Toronto's Sarah Polley is Only 20 but already a veteran actor so secure in her craft s ...

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, and

Dagur Kári Dagur Kári (born Dagur Kári Pétursson; 12 December 1973) is an Icelandic film director. Early life He was born in Paris, France, to Icelandic parents. The family returned to Iceland when he was 3 years old. After attending local schools as a ...

's 2003 drama ''

Nói albínói ''Noi the Albino'' ( () is an Icelandic film by director Dagur Kári released in 2003. The film explores the life of teenage outsider Nói (played by Tómas Lemarquis) in a remote fishing village in western Iceland. It won multiple awards. ''N ...

'' (''Nói the Albino''). For his role in ''Nói albínói'', Þröstur won Best Supporting Actor at the

5th Edda Awards The 5th Edda Awards were held on 10 October 2003 at Nordica Hótel in Reykjavík. The awards were hosted by TV presenters Eva María Jónsdóttir and Sverrir Þór Sverrisson (Sveppi). The latter was the previous year's Best Television Personality. ...

. In 2008, Þröstur won Iceland's

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 Best Supporting Actor for his role in the Baltasar Kormákur directed drama ''

Brúðguminn ''White Night Wedding'' () is a 2008 Icelandic film directed by Baltasar Kormákur. The bittersweet comedy, about the never-ending search for love and happiness, takes place in Flatey, Breiðafjörður, western Iceland. The film is loosely base ...

''. In May 2009, Þröstur began directing the play ''Við Borgum, Við Ekki! Borgum Ekki!'' (English title: ''We Can't Pay! Won't Pay!''), a comedy centering on the 2008–2012 Icelandic financial crisis at the Borgarleikhúsið Reykjavik City Theatre. In November 2009, he was the beneficiary of the Mrs. Stefania Guðmundsdóttir Memorial Fund (Icelandic: ''Minningarsjóður frú Stefaníu Guðmundsdóttur''), a fund established in 1938 to promote Icelandic drama and theatre.

Personal life

On 7 July 2015, a fishing vessel he was working on, ''Jón Hákon BA 60'', capsized and sank close to

Aðalvík Aðalvík is a bay located in the southwest part of Hornstrandir on Iceland. The bay splits into three main locations, the former fishing villages of Látrar (120 inhabitants in 1920) and Sæból (80 inhabitants in 1900) and Miðvík. All of the ...

. Þröstur and two of the crew were rescued an hour later, while another crewmember died in the accident.

Awards and nominations

Filmography

*1986 '' Eins og skepnan deyr'' (English release title: ''The Beast'') *1987 ''Áramótaskaup 1987'' (Icelandic television movie) *1989 ''Flugþrá'' (Icelandic television short) – Boy *1989 ''Magnús'' – Gísli *1992 ''

Sódóma Reykjavík ''Remote Control'' (Icelandic language, Icelandic: ''Sódóma Reykjavík'' () is a 1992 Icelandic film directed by Óskar Jónasson in his feature-length directorial debut. The plot is a farce, revolving around the young car mechanic Axel and hi ...

'' (English release title: ''Remote Control'') – Áslákur *1993 ''Í ljósaskiptunum'' (Icelandic video) *1995 '' Tár úr steini'' (English: ''Tears of Stone'') – Jón *1996 ''Áramótaskaup 1996'' (Icelandic television movie) *1997 ''Perlur og svín'' – Erlingur *1997 ''Stikkfrí'' (English release title: ''Count Me Out'') – Siggi *1998 ''Áramótaskaup 1998'' (Icelandic television movie) *1999 '' Skaupið: 1999'' (Icelandic television movie) *2000 ''

'' – Brúsi *2000 ''Óskabörn þjóðarinnar'' (English release title: ''Plan B'') *2001 '' No Such Thing'' – First mate *2002 ''

'' (English release title: ''The Sea'') – Kalli Bumba *2003 ''

'' (English release title: ''Noi the Albino'') – Kiddi Beikon *2003 ''Þriðja nafni'' (English release title: ''The Third Name'') – Arnar *2003 ''Njálssaga'' (Icelandic television movie) – Melkólfur *2004 ''Áramótaskaup 2004'' (Icelandic television movie) – various roles *2005 ''Carjackin'' (short film) – Manager *2005 ''

Beowulf & Grendel ''Beowulf & Grendel'' is a 2005 Canadian- Icelandic fantasy adventure film directed by Sturla Gunnarsson, loosely based on the Anglo-Saxon epic poem ''Beowulf''. It stars Gerard Butler as Beowulf, Stellan Skarsgård as Hrothgar, Ingvar Eggert Si ...

'' – Guard *2006 '' Köld slóð'' (English: ''Cold Trail'') – Baldur Maríusson *2007 ''Parents'' – Addi *2008 ''Support'' (short film) – Suicidal patient *2008 ''

'' (English release title: ''White Night Wedding'') – Börkur *2008 ''Sveitabrúðkaup'' (English release title: ''

Country Wedding ''Country Wedding'' () is an Icelandic film directed by Valdís Óskarsdóttir and released on 28 August 2008. It tells the story of a couple who decide to get married in a countryside church, but things do not go as planned. Cast * Ingvar Egg ...

'') – Svanur *2008 '' Reykjavik-Rotterdam'' – Jensen *2009 ''Reyndu aftur'' (short film) – Axel *2009 ''The Cliff'' (Icelandic television series) – Freyr *2010 ''Kóngavegur'' (English: ''King's Road'') – Kári *2010 ''Algjör Sveppi og dularfulla hótelherbergið'' – Jón Gamli *2011 '' Eldfjall'' (English release title: ''Volcano'') – Janitor *2012 ''Svartur á leik'' (English release title: ''Black's Game'') – Jói Faró *2012 '' Djúpið'' (English release title: ''The Deep'') – Lárus *2013 '' Metalhead'' – Gunnar *2014 ''Hjonabandssaela'' (short film) – Fannar *2014 ''Harry Og Heimir'' – Sigtryggur Klein *2015 ''Klukkur um jól'' (Icelandic television series) – Dad *2016 ''Pale Star'' – Ari *2016 ''Eiðurinn'' (English release title: ''The Oath'') – Eldri Maður *2017 ''Ég man þig'' (English release title: ''I Remember You'') – Skipstjóri *2017–2018 ''Hversdagsreglur'' (Icelandic television series) *2018 ''Flateyjargátan'' (Icelandic television miniseries) – Sailor *2020 ''Síðasta veiðiferðin'' (English release title: ''The Last Fishing Trip'') – Hansi *2021 ''Alma'' *2021 ''Heartless'' (short film) – Pétur *2021 ''Áramótaskaup'' (Icelandic television series) *2022 ''Verbúðin'' (Icelandic television series) – Tryggvi *2022 ''Allra síðasta veiðiferðin'' – Hansi *2022 ''Vitjanir'' (Icelandic television series) – Guðjón Leó *2022 ''Svar við bréfi Helgu'' (English release title: ''A Letter from Helga'') – Jósteinn *2022 ''Á Ferð með Mömmu'' (English release title: ''

Driving Mum ''Driving Mum'' () is a 2022 comedy drama film written and directed by Hilmar Oddsson that stars Þröstur Leó Gunnarsson, Kristbjörg Kjeld, and Hera Hilmar. ''Driving Mum'' is shot in black-and-white. Plot summary Set in 1980, after the s ...

'') – Jón *2023 ''Operation Napoleon'' – Jóhannes *2023 ''Auður'' (English release title: ''The Search for Audur'') – Kútur *2023 ''Einvera'' (English release title: ''Solitude'') – Gunnar

References

External links

* {{authority control 1961 births Throstur Leo Gunnarsson Throstur Leo Gunnarsson Living people Throstur Leo Gunnarsson Throstur Leo Gunnarsson Throstur Leo Gunnarsson Throstur Leo Gunnarsson