Netflix has ordered “Clark,” a drama series about the Swedish criminal Clark Olofsson who will be portrayed by Bill Skarsgård (“It Chapter Two”).
The six-episode series is based on Olofsson’s autobiography “Vafan var det som hände” and will chart Clark’s early years until present day. Referred to as a “celebrity gangster,” Olofsson started his criminal career in the 1960s and became one of the most controversial personalities in contemporary Swedish history. Over the years, Clark gave rise to the concept of Stockholm Syndrome, managed to escape prisons and committed robberies all over Europe.
“Clark” is set to be directed by Jonas Åkerlund and will launch exclusively on Netflix. The Swedish-language series is being produced by Scandinavian Content Group.
“’Clark’ is the story about the most politically incorrect man, who lived the most politically incorrect life… 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,” said Åkerlund.
Åkerlund said Skarsgård was “the perfect match for this” and “will bring the Stockholm Syndrome to the role.”
Skarsgård, meanwhile, described Olofsson as “one of Sweden’s most colorful and fascinating individuals” and said he accepted “this challenge with delight mingled with terror.”
“Clark’s life and history is so incredible and screwed that it would even make Scorsese blush,” said the actor, who will also be starring in the Netflix film “The Devil All The Time” and the Sundance hit “Nine Days” for Sony Pictures Classics. Skarsgård most recently starred in Hulu’s “Castle Rock,” a psychological drama series from J.J. Abrams and Stephen King.
Tesha Crawford, Netflix’s director of International Originals in Northern Europe, said the company could not imagine a better team than (Jonas Åkerlund and Bill Skarsgård) to tell the complex story about Clark Olofsson and how he became one of the most controversial personalities in modern Swedish times.”
Skarsgård is executive producer on the series, along with Hans Engholm and Åkerlund. Börje Hansson and Patrick Sobieski are producing for Scandinavian Content Group. The series was penned by Fredrik Agetoft, Peter Arrhenius and Åkerlund.