---
name: "Ulrich Thomsen"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/ulrich-thomsen"
fi1m_id: "ulrich-thomsen"
imdb_id: "nm0860947"
tmdb_id: 4455
wikidata_id: "Q382210"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "6 December 1963"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 5
average_fi1m_score: 72
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 5
updated: "2026-10-07T14:21:54.414063+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Ulrich Thomsen

## Identity

Ulrich Thomsen

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/ulrich-thomsen
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** ulrich-thomsen
- **IMDb ID:** nm0860947
- **TMDB ID:** 4455
- **Wikidata ID:** Q382210
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulrich_Thomsen, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q382210, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0860947/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4455

Actor. Born 6 December 1963 in Odense, Denmark.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 6 December 1963, Odense, Denmark
- **Active:** 1998–present
- **Also known as:** Ulrik Thomsen, اولریش تامسن
- **Average Fi1m score:** 72, as actor, over 5 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1990s 72 (2), 2000s 78 (1), 2010s 72 (1), 2020s 68 (1)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 71 to 70 across 4 titles
- **Score spread:** 1 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 1 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 1 of 4 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 4, Action 1, Adventure 1, Crime 1, Mystery 1, Sci-Fi & Fantasy 1
- **Screen time:** 4 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $362m across 1 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulrich_Thomsen, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q382210, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0860947/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/4455

## Streaming the US now

- **The Criterion Channel:** [*The Celebration*](https://film.one/film/the-celebration.md) (85)
- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*The Virgin Queen*](https://film.one/tv/the-virgin-queen.md) (78)
- **Apple TV:** [*Banshee*](https://film.one/tv/banshee.md) (72)
- **HBO Max:** [*Lanterns*](https://film.one/tv/lanterns.md) (68)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Ulrich Thomsen

> Ulrich Thomsen can make the effort of speaking hold our attention through a roomful of noise. We value the patient, hesitant actor of *The Celebration* more than his reputation for menace might suggest.

In *The Celebration* (1998), Ulrich Thomsen makes us notice the effort Christian needs to speak. He hesitates without telling us exactly what to feel about the hesitation, and holds our attention through the family's chaos. We were moved by how difficult he made speaking seem; the pauses kept us conscious of Christian's suffering. Thomas Vinterberg gives the performance room, even when the restless camerawork competes with it.

His film debut came in *Nightwatch* (1994), but *The Celebration* was the breakthrough that led to international work, including Davidov in *The World Is Not Enough* (1999). His career then moved between Danish films, international supporting parts and television. He played Michael in Susanne Bier's *Brothers* (2004) and Kai Proctor, the principal antagonist across four seasons, in *Banshee* (2013–2016). Bier, like Vinterberg, has worked with him repeatedly.

The attraction of casting him as an antagonist is understandable, but we would be wary of treating menace as the whole job. In *The Celebration*, Henning Moritzen's father supplies a formidable presence and Thomas Bo Larsen's Michael the more volatile energy. Thomsen helps make their efforts to contain themselves as absorbing as any loss of control. He does not hurry to make Christian's feelings readable, which gives us time to look beyond his behaviour. We would like more parts to ask him for that much uncertainty, rather than settle for a forbidding presence.

*Lanterns* (2026), in which he plays Sinestro, belongs to the international television side of that career. We found the programme patient and well acted, but too willing to cut away from Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre's crime drama for a plot that would not settle. We will leave Sinestro's contribution undescribed rather than give away what the programme has in store. For a first encounter with Thomsen, choose *The Celebration* and allow for an uncomfortable evening.

## Biography

Ulrich Thomsen is a Danish actor. He graduated from the Danish National School of Theatre and Contemporary Dance in 1993 and began his career in Copenhagen theatres before making his film debut in *Nightwatch* (1994).

His breakthrough came with the role of Christian in Thomas Vinterberg's *The Celebration* (1998). He gained international recognition as Davidov in the James Bond film *The World Is Not Enough* (1999) and later appeared in *Kingdom of Heaven* (2005), *The International* (2009) and *The Thing* (2011). On television he played Kai Proctor in *Banshee* (2013–2016) and Alexander Kirk in *The Blacklist*.

Since 2026 he has portrayed Sinestro in the DC series *Lanterns*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, slashfilm.com, variety.com.*

## On Fi1m (5)

- *Lanterns* (2026), Fi1m 68, as Sinestro — [page](https://film.one/tv/lanterns.md)
- *Banshee* (2013), Fi1m 72, as Kai Proctor — [page](https://film.one/tv/banshee.md)
- *The Virgin Queen* (2006), Fi1m 78, as Baron Casper Breuner — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-virgin-queen.md)
- *The World Is Not Enough* (1999), Fi1m 58, as Davidov — [page](https://film.one/film/the-world-is-not-enough.md)
- *The Celebration* (1998), Fi1m 85, as Christian — [page](https://film.one/film/the-celebration.md)

## Complete filmography (107)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Austerity* (2026), as Nikolajs far
- *Lanterns* (2026), series, as Sinestro — Fi1m 68, [page](https://film.one/tv/lanterns.md)
- *Run* (2025), as Matt
- *Dead Language* (2025), as Esben
- *Grundtvig* (2024), series, as Grundtvig
- *Boundless* (2024), as Carl Mørck
- *Stockholm Bloodbath* (2024), as Hemming Gadh
- *Ripple* (2023), as Hammer
- *Before It Ends* (2023), as Lauritz
- *Agent* (2023), series, as Ulrich Thomsen
- *All Exclusive* (2022), series, as Sig selv
- *Shining Girls* (2022), series, as Britta's Husband
- *Trom* (2022), series, as Hannios Martinsson
- *A Violent Man* (2022), as Warden Goodwillie
- *Take My Hand* (2022), as Claes
- *American Sausage Standoff* (2021), Producer, Director, Writer
- *The Marco Effect* (2021), as Carl Mørck
- *Mother at War* (2020), as Feldwebel Meier
- *The Idiots Who Started The Party* (2020), as Sig selv
- *The Good Traitor* (2020), as Henrik Kauffmann
- *The New Pope* (2020), series, as Doctor Lindegard
- *Face to Face* (2019), series, as Bjørn Rasmussen
- *Gooseboy* (2019), as Knud Heinesen
- *The Space Between the Lines* (2019), as Bernhard
- *1989: A Spy Story* (2019), as Jeremy Redman
- *In Love & War* (2018), as Müller
- *Counterpart* (2017), series, as Aldrich
- *Darling* (2017), as Kristian
- *Small Town Killers* (2017), as Edward
- *In Embryo* (2016), as Peter · Writer, Director, Executive Producer, Producer
- *The Commune* (2016), as Erik
- *Summer of '92* (2015), as Richard Møller Nielsen
- *Ditte & Louise* (2015), series, as Sig selv
- *Shadow of a Hero* (2015), as Gustaf (voice)
- *Mortdecai* (2015), as Romanov
- *A Second Chance* (2015), as Simon
- *The Miracle* (2013), as Jakob
- *The Blacklist* (2013), series, as Alexander Kirk — Fi1m 63, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-blacklist.md)
- *The Notebook* (2013), as Offizier
- *Banshee* (2013), series, as Kai Proctor — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/tv/banshee.md)
- *Banshee: Origins* (2013), series, as Kai Proctor
- *In der Überzahl* (2013), as Stig Sørensen
- *Aya* (2012), as Mr. Overby
- *The Thing* (2011), as Dr. Sander Halvorson
- *Those Who Kill* (2011), series, as Martin Høeg
- *Season of the Witch* (2011), as Eckhardt
- *ZULU Comedy Galla* (2010), series, as Ulrich Thomsen
- *In a Better World* (2010), as Claus
- *The Silence* (2010), as Peer Sommer
- *Centurion* (2010), as Gorlacon
- *The Left Wing Gang* (2009), series, as Jørn Moos
- *Tell-Tale* (2009), as Lethe
- *Duplicity* (2009), as Big Swiss Suit
- *The International* (2009), as Jonas Skarssen
- *Lulu and Jimi* (2009), as Harry Hass
- *Fear Me Not* (2008), as Mikael
- *The Broken* (2008), as Dr Robert Zachman
- *Fringe* (2008), series, as Man in Zeppelin, aka Mr X — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/fringe.md)
- *Hitman* (2007), as Mikhail Belicoff
- *The Company* (2007), series, as Starik Zhilov
- *Impossibly Yours* (2007), as Jan
- *Opium: Diary of a Madwoman* (2007), as Dr. Brenner
- *The Substitute* (2007), as Jesper Osböll
- *Clash of Egos* (2006), as Tonny
- *Han, hun og Strindberg* (2006), Producer
- *The Virgin Queen* (2006), series, as Baron Casper Breuner — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-virgin-queen.md)
- *Allegro* (2005), as Zetterstrom
- *Manderlay* (2005), Thanks
- *Kingdom of Heaven* (2005), as Templar Master
- *Adam's Apples* (2005), as Adam
- *Sergeant Pepper* (2004), as Johnny Sínger
- *Brothers* (2004), as Michael
- *The Rocket Post* (2004), as Gerhard Zucher
- *Blueprint* (2003), as Dr. Martin Fisher
- *Ins Leben zurück* (2003), as Eric Lundgren
- *Baby* (2003), as Marc · Executive Producer
- *The Inheritance* (2003), as Christoffer
- *Max* (2002), as Captain Mayr
- *Killing Me Softly* (2002), as Klaus
- *P.O.V. - Point of View* (2002), as Henrik
- *The Zookeeper* (2001), as Dragov
- *Alias* (2001), series, as Ulrich Kottor — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/tv/alias.md)
- *Mike Bassett: England Manager* (2001), as Dr. Hans Shoegaarten
- *Mostly Martha* (2001), as Sam Thalberg
- *The Weight of Water* (2001), as John Hontvedt
- *Flickering Lights* (2000), as Peter
- *Solen er så rød* (2000), as Sælger
- *The World Is Not Enough* (1999), as Davidov — Fi1m 58, [page](https://film.one/film/the-world-is-not-enough.md)
- *Deep Water* (1999), as Flygge
- *Dybt vand* (1999), series, as Flygge
- *Angel of the Night* (1998), as Alex
- *The Celebration* (1998), as Christian — Fi1m 85, [page](https://film.one/film/the-celebration.md)
- *Baby Doom* (1998), as Magnus
- *Election Night* (1998), as Peter
- *Credo* (1997), as Svane
- *Royal Blues* (1997), as Christian
- *A Regular Thing* (1997), as Holger
- *Bryggeren* (1996), series, as Gartner Jørgensen
- *The Biggest Heroes* (1996), as Peter
- *Charlot og Charlotte* (1996), series, as Læge 1
- *Portland* (1996), as Lasse
- *Café Hector* (1996), as Christian
- *Nightwatch* (1994), as Rod 1
- *Hit the Bag* (1993), as Slipse-Peter
- *The Riders*, Actor
- *Apparat*, Actor
- *Masculine Misunderstandings*, as Troels

## Gallery

- ![Danish actor Ulrich Thomsen at the Berlinale. (2016)](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-db158791eb40.jpg) Danish actor Ulrich Thomsen at the Berlinale. (2016) — Paul Katzenberger, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Ulrich_Thomsen.jpg/1280px-Ulrich_Thomsen.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Ulrich Thomsen](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-21dcc1fbc529.jpg) Ulrich Thomsen — Siebbi, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Ulrich_Thomsen_o.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Ulrich Thomsen](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-a0296aaa22ae.jpg) Ulrich Thomsen — Image via TMDB
- ![Ulrich Thomsen](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-e529e9da1205.jpg) Ulrich Thomsen — Image via TMDB
- ![Ulrich Thomsen](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-4b989eb361b6.jpg) Ulrich Thomsen — Image via TMDB
- ![Ulrich Thomsen](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-c9dd02e10565.jpg) Ulrich Thomsen — Image via TMDB
- ![Ulrich Thomsen](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-3f9de4ca07ae.jpg) Ulrich Thomsen — Image via TMDB
- ![Ulrich Thomsen](https://film.one/media/person/22098/gallery-7db7d12f42b8.jpg) Ulrich Thomsen — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Other awards — 7 won, 5 nominated

- European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film 2017: European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film (nominated), for *The Commune*
- Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role 2016: Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (won), for *Sommeren '92*
- European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film 2011: European Film Award – People's Choice Award for Best European Film (nominated), for *In a Better World*
- European Film Award for Best Actor 2005: European Film Award for Best Actor (nominated), for *Brothers*
- Jameson People's Choice Award for Best Actor 2005: Jameson People's Choice Award for Best Actor (nominated), for *Brothers*
- Bodil Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role 2004: Bodil Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (won), for *The Inheritance*
- Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role 2004: Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (won), for *The Inheritance*
- Silver Shell for Best Actor 2004: Silver Shell for Best Actor (won)
- Bodil Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role 1999: Bodil Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (won), for *The Celebration*
- Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role 1999: Robert Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (won), for *The Celebration*
- European Film Award for Best Actor 1998: European Film Award for Best Actor (nominated), for *The Celebration*
- Robert Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role 1997: Robert Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (won), for *The Biggest Heroes*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/ulrich-thomsen