PRESS RELEASE
Mads Mikkelsen (Doctor Strange, Rogue One) will star in the noir action thriller, Polar, set in the gritty underworld of political assassins. Award-winning Swedish director, Jonas Åkerlund (Lords of Chaos, Spun, Beyonce’s Hold-up, Lady Gaga’s Telephone) will direct this adaption of the acclaimed Dark Horse graphic novel Polar: Came With The Cold by Victor Santos, from a screenplay by Jayson Rothwell. Constantin Film’s Robert Kulzer (Resident Evil) and Bolt Pictures’Jeremy Bolt (Resident Evil, Death Race) will join forces with Dark Horse Entertainment’s Mike Richardson (Hellboy, Dark Matter) and Keith Goldberg (Umbrella Academy, The Legend of Tarzan) to produce, with Martin Moszkowicz executive producing. Mister Smith Entertainment announced that it is debuting the feature to international buyers at the upcoming 2017 American Film Market.
The world’s top assassin Duncan Vizla, A.K.A the Black Kaiser (Mikkelsen), is retiring when his former employer marks him as a liability to the firm. Against his will, he soon finds himself back in the game, being hunted by an army of younger, faster, ruthless killers who will stop at nothing to have him silenced. Having no choice but to return to the shadowy life he thought he’d left behind, he must use his arsenal of deadly skills to outsmart his enemies, protect an innocent woman and redeem what’s left of his tormented soul.
Producers Jeremy Bolt stated ”Mads Mikkelsen was born to play the world’s best assassin – he is totally believable as the black kaiser in Polar and Jonas’ unique, vibrant but grounded and darkly comic style will set Polar apart as an unforgettable tale.”
Award-winning actor and international star, Mads Mikkelsen, is known for his striking character portrayals from his lead role in the television series Hannibal to icy Bond villain Le Chiffre in Casino Royale. He recently starred opposite Benedict Cumberbatch in Marvel’s Doctor Strange and in the Star Wars adventure, Rogue One. Mikkelsen received the Best Actor Award at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival for The Hunt. He previously garnered international attention for his starring role in The Punisher film trilogy from director Nicolas Winding Refn.
Director Jonas Åkerlund is renowned for his visually driven signature style. Åkerlund is currently in post-production on feature film, Lords of Chaos, starring Rory Culkin, Emory Cohen and Sky Ferreira for Twentieth Century Fox and Vice Film. Previously he directed Small Apartments, Horsemen and Spun. His recent contribution to Beyoncé’s visual album “Lemonade” earned an Emmy and Grammy nomination. His concert films include the both Emmy and Grammy nominated ”Beyoncé & Jay-Z – On the Run” (HBO) and Taylor Swift’s “The 1989 World Tour Live” (Apple TV.) He received his third Grammy award for Best Music Film for Paul McCartney’s “Live Kisses.” A frequent collaborator of Madonna, he has also directed music videos for Lady Gaga, U2, The Rolling Stones, Beyoncé, Pink, Jennifer Lopez, Metallica, Smashing Pumpkins, Lenny Kravitz and Maroon 5. Akerlund has earned an Addy, Cannes Gold Lion and Cannes Grand Prix Awards for his commercial work for Dior, Hugo Boss, Sony, Crest, Avon, Dell, Volkswagen, Virgin, Coca Cola, Smirnoff, Ikea, Panasonic, Adidas, Beyoncé for o2 and H&M.
Mads Mikkelsen is represented by UTA and Art Management.
Jonas Åkerlund is represented by Anonymous Content and Casarotto Ramsay & Associates.
